The Tale of Turtlestar
by BrightStorm98
Summary: Set in the Old Forest while SkyClan was still around, young Turtlestar discovers he is entwined with a destiny that will pit that Warrior Clans against a foe they've never before fought. Will the Clans survive?
1. Allegiances

**_This story is set in the Old Forest, six generations before the time of Cloudstar and SkyClan being forced out of the forest._**

 ** _Leafbare is drawing to a close, but it has taken many lives among the Clans. A mysterious disease, dubbed Carrioncough, has been infecting warriors, elders, and even the old medicine cat of ThunderClan, Meadowtuft. Two leaders have lost they're lives to this outbreak: Driftstar of RiverClan at the beginning of the plague and now Mousestar, leader of ShadowClan, who lost three lives after repeated infection from trying to help heal his Clanmates._**

 ** _Robinstar has taken over RiverClan, ruling proud and wise._**

 ** _Now, it is time for Turtlestar to rise to power in ShadowClan. He is young and still has plenty to learn about being a leader, but something is coming that will mean life or death for all the Clan cats, and his destiny is intertwined in the struggle._**

 ** _Will the Clans survive?_**

* * *

 ** _Allegiances_**

ShadowClan

 **Leader**

Turtlestar: Small black tabby tom with a gray underbelly and ice blue eyes.

 **Deputy**

Moonbriar: Silver dappled she-cat with a long tail and amber eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Featherpaw

 **Medicine Cat**

Cherrycloud: White she-cat with red splotches and green eyes.

 **Warriors (Toms and she-cats without kits)**

Birchstrike: Brown tom with white flecks and a flash on his chest and amber eyes.

Webpelt: Black tom with patches of white and ice blue eyes. Turtlestar's father.

Smokefur: Light gray tom with brilliant blue eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Leopardpaw

Willownose: Gray tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes.

Maplestorm: Dark ginger and white she-cat.

Rabbitwhisker: Light brown tom with green eyes.

Silverclaw: Lithe silver-gray she-cat with short whiskers and emerald eyes. Turtlestar's sister.

Darkbird: Stormy gray tabby she-cat with white front paws and striking light brown eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Acornpaw

Foxfang: Large thick furred dark ginger tom with green eyes.

Ashwing: Mottled gray and black tom with emerald eyes.

Blackflame: Black she-cat with ginger spots.

 **Apprentice:** Sweetpaw

Briarstep: Golden brown tom with a bobbed tail.

 **Apprentice:** Nettlepaw

Duskheart: Gray tabby tom with a white underbelly and chest.

Talonflight: Spikey furred brown and white she-cat.

 **Apprentices (kits more than six-moons-old training to be warriors)**

Featherpaw: Smokey gray tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

Leopardpaw: Mottled light brown tom with a distinctive dappled coat and green eyes.

Acornpaw: Dark ginger she-cat with white ears and paws.

Sweetpaw: Mostly gray, gray tortoiseshell she-cat with brilliant blue eyes.

Nettlepaw: Light brown tom with dark ginger patches.

 **Queens (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)**

Mistyflight: Small gray tabby she-cat with green eyes. Mother of Briarstep's kits: Cinderkit (gray tabby she-kit), Hawkkit (golden brown tabby tom-kit), and Foggykit (white and gray tom-kit).

Hazelflower: Black and white she-cat with a fluffy tail and amber eyes. Expecting Ashwing's kits.

 **Elders (toms and she-cats now retired)**

Icepounce: White tom with shaggy fur and long claws.

Grayfall: Gray she-cat with darker gray paws.

ThunderClan

 **Leader**

Flowerstar: Long furred dark cream she-cat with hazel eyes.

 **Deputy**

Stripedfeather: Silver tabby tom with black stripes and amber eyes.

 **Medicine Cat**

Oakspots: Mottled brown and gray tom. Recently assumed responsibility as ThunderClan's sole medicine cat.

 **Warriors (toms and she-cats without kits)**

Ravenmoon: Black she-cat with a dark gray stripe down her back and amber eyes.

Slateleg: Stone gray tom with a brown chest and underbelly.

Redclaw: Ginger tabby tom with a white tail.

 **Apprentice:** Antpaw

Dawnshine: Golden she-cat with gray-blue eyes.

Moletail: Dark brown tabby tom with a white tipped tail.

Raggedfern: Long furred gray tabby she-cat.

Sparrowstripe: Dark brown tabby tom with white patches.

 **Apprentice:** Thornpaw

Brindleflower: Pale ginger tabby she-cat with tuft ears and a bushy tail.

Pinefoot: Mottled light brown tom with a white muzzle.

Specklewing: Silver spotted she-cat with a dark gray face.

Jaywhisker: Gray-blue tom with green eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Finchpaw

Pebblefur: Gray and white splotchy tom with a long tail.

Daisycloud: Yellow tabby she-cat with white paws.

 **Apprentices (kits more than six-moons-old training to become warriors)**

Antpaw: Dark brown tabby tom with a paler brown belly and tail.

Thornpaw: Golden tom with brown flecks and long white legs.

Finchpaw: Dark brown she-cat with a white underbelly and muzzle and gray-blue eyes.

 **Queens (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)**

Honeyfall: Pale ginger she-cat with blue eyes. Mother of Stripedfeather's kits: Sandykit (pale ginger she-kit) and Shrewkit (silver tabby tom-kit).

Shadowfur: Solid black she-cat with amber eyes. Mother of Redclaw's kits: Sootkit (Black and gray tabby tom-kit), Tigerkit (ginger she-kit with black stripes), and Petalkit (black she-kit with a white dappled chest).

 **Elders (toms and she-cats now retired)**

Ashenpelt: Dark gray tom with a long scar across his face.

Ivyclaw: Ginger and white tom.

Featherfur: Fluffy white she-cat with a gray tabby tail.

RiverClan

 **Leader**

Robinstar: Silky furred ginger she-cat with green eyes.

 **Deputy**

Aldercloud: Light brown tabby she-cat with a white spotted tail and blue eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Reedpaw

 **Medicine Cats**

Chestnutfur: Sleek brown tom.

Liondapple: Golden dappled tabby she-cat. Recently completed her training.

 **Warriors (toms and she-cats without kits)**

Fleetclaw: White tom with a ginger tail and head.

Leafstone: Glossy furred gray tabby she-cat.

 **Apprentice:** Goosepaw

Rainfang: Long furred brown tom with blue eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Shortpaw

Sorrelmist: Tortoiseshell and white she-cat with blue eyes.

Berrythorn: White tom with brown and black patches and a distinctive pink nose.

Otterpelt: Dark brown tom with a cream underbelly and front paws.

Dewcloud: Pale gray she-cat with glossy fur.

 **Apprentice:** Ivypaw

Sagefrost: Ginger tom with one black paw.

Troutclaw: Dark gray tabby tom with white legs.

Crystalwing: Silvery white tabby she-cat with green eyes.

Streamfur: Dappled gray tom.

 **Apprentices (kits more than six-moons-old training to be warriors)**

Reedpaw: Dark cream tom with glossy fur.

Goosepaw: Dark gray tabby tom with blue eyes.

Shortpaw: Small dark brown tabby she-cat with white paws.

Ivypaw: Black tabby she-cat with a brown underbelly.

 **Queens (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)**

Minnowflower: Gray and white tabby she-cat. Expecting Berrythorn's kits.

Nightshimmer: Silky long-furred black she-cat. Mother of Streamfur's kits: Fernkit (gray she-kit) and Bearkit (fluffy black tom-kit).

 **Elders (toms and she-cats now retired)**

Seedwhisker: Dusty golden she-cat with a white muzzle.

Shadewillow: Sleek gray tabby and white she-cat.

SkyClan

 **Leader**

Duststar: Large golden brown tom with one black ear and a black muzzle.

 **Deputy**

Rowanleaf: Ginger tom with a white underbelly.

 **Medicine Cat**

Palepoppy: Silver she-cat with hazel eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Thrushpaw: Brown and gray tabby she-cat.

 **Warriors (toms and she-cats without kits)**

Quailsong: Brown and gray tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

Stoneleap: Large gray tom.

 **Apprentice:** Lightpaw

Waspflight: Dark brown tom with long legs.

Thawpelt: Black tom with a white underbelly and muzzle.

 **Apprentice:** Littlepaw

Firepetal: Ginger and white she-cat with amber eyes.

Hailcloud: Pale gray tom with white flecks and pale green eyes.

Icespots: White she-cat with golden patches.

 **Apprentice:** Sunpaw

Shadefall: White tom with black ears and a black tabby tail.

Thistletuft: Long-haired black tom.

Russetstorm: Reddish-brown she-cat with green eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Lilypaw

Jadeheart: Brown tabby she-cat with bright green eyes. Former loner.

 **Apprentices (kits more than six-moons-old training to be warriors)**

Lightpaw: Golden tabby tom with a black patch over one of his ears.

Lilypaw: Golden and white she-cat with silky fur.

Littlepaw: Small, sleek black tom.

Sunpaw: Bright orange tom.

 **Queens (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)**

Softmoon: Silver and white tabby she-cat. Mother of Waspflight's kits: Mintkit (a silver and white tabby she-kit), Sprucekit (a dark brown tabby she-kit), and Hickorykit (gray tom-kit).

 **Elders (tom and she-cats now retired)**

Honeythistle: Golden tabby tom with long silky fur.

Yellowstrike: Broad-shouldered black-and-white tom with bright amber eyes.

Twigclaw: Brown tabby tom with amber eyes.

WindClan

 **Leader**

Haystar: Yellow tabby tom with hazel eyes and a thin tail.

 **Deputy**

Quickfoot: Sleek black and white she-cat.

 **Medicine Cat**

Snowbreeze: Fluffy white she-cat with green eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Adderpaw: Pale ginger tabby tom.

 **Warriors (toms and she-cats without kits)**

Eagleclaw: Sandy-colored tom.

Mossflower: Swift gray and white she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Apprentice:** Gorsepaw

Harefoot: Light brown tabby tom with white paws.

Amberstorm: Dusty orange she-cat with green eyes.

Deerpetal: Small fawn and cream she-cat.

 **Apprentice:** Cloverpaw

Weaseltooth: Tan and white tom.

Barkfeather: Grayish white dappled tom with a fluffy tail.

Thicketfur: Dark brown tom with redish-brown patches.

 **Apprentice:** Bluepaw

Spottedblossom: Pale ginger and silver mottled she-cat.

Beetlewing: Black tom with flecks of lighter smokey gray that look blue in some light.

Sienna: Pale gray she-cat with hazel eyes. Former loner.

Froststreak: Muscular white tom with pale silver stripes.

Cedarsong: Sandy brown she-cat.

Roseshade: Gray she-cat with a white underbelly and pinkish white muzzle.

 **Apprentices (kits more than six-moons-old training to be warriors)**

Cloverpaw: Light brown tabby she-cat with green eyes.

Gorsepaw: Pale gray and white she-cat.

Bluepaw: Black tom with flecks of lighter smokey gray that look blue in some light.

 **Queen (she-cats expecting or nursing kits)**

Runningpoppy: Long-legged ginger she-cat with green eyes. Expecting Weaseltooth's kits.

 **Elders (toms and she-cats now retired)**

Swiftstrike: Thin mottled dark ginger she-cat with amber eyes.

Pinedapple: Dark tortoiseshell she-cat.

Cats Outside the Clans

Tory: A fluffy ginger kittypet she-cat.

Rippley: Dark brown tabby kittypet she-cat.

Salt: White loner tom. Sienna's brother.

Luna: Dark gray tabby rouge she-cat.

Danny: Black and white rouge.

Buck: Big brown tabby rouge tom.

Fern: Tortoiseshell rouge she-cat.

Puddle: Black and orange she-kit.

Branch: Brown and white tabby tom-kit.


	2. Chapter 1

Turtlefoot had never felt so cold in all his life. The night echoed with the crunch of the frozen ground beneath his paws and he fluffed his fur out to block the chilling wind that had been trying to knock him sideways the entire journey. He might have believed he was sleepwalking if Cherrycloud's white pelt didn't glow in the pale light of the claw-moon.

It still hadn't sunk in that Mousestar was gone, waiting to be buried at daybreak in camp by Grayfall and Icepounce the elders, his grown kits and Clanmates around him sitting vigil.

The reality that he was about to become ShadowClan's leader was like swallowing a boney old rat whole.

 _StarClan help me, I'm not ready for this._ The tom thought as the Highstones glared down at him, lined with Silverpelt's twinkling eyes that seemed to be judging him from their perch in the sky.

He almost bumped into Cherrycloud, who'd been waiting for him higher up the slope.

"We're almost there, don't worry." The red-splotched she-cat mewed. Her presence was comforting, but made the whole experience even more surreal at the same time since she'd help birth Turtlefoot as a young apprentice.

He gave her a small nod before they continued, the sharp peaks growing ever taller and Turtlefoot's heart pounding faster and faster. He'd only become deputy in leaf-fall after the death of Tanglefur at the claws of some rouges. Everyone seemed surprised by the leader's choice, even he'd thought that Mousestar would choose a more experienced warrior such as Birchstrike or Willownose.

Yet here he was, about to face StarClan to receive his nine lives. Unless of course, they'd deemed him unworthy or were going to make him test his ability somehow.

Turtlefoot's mind buzzed with endless scenarios as they neared the tunnel into the rock at last. They stopped at the entrance as the medicine cat sat down to pick some bits of gravel out from between her pads and Turtlefoot took a moment to close his eyes and yowl internally in the fear that was consuming him in this moment.

He jumped a bit when Cherrycloud rested her tail on one of his shoulders.

"You're nervous, but don't be. StarClan is waiting to grant you their blessing." She purred trying to soothe him like a kit.

"I'm not just nervous...I, I'm terrified!" He sputtered out before he realized what a frightened fool he sounded like. "Mousestar was still, so young. He lost his last three lives so fast. He barely had time to train me, Tanglefur knew much better than I will about leading! Now I'm supposed to follow in his paw steps so soon... Of course I'm not going to run off or something mouse-brained like that but-"

"Mousestar believed _you_ could lead on your _own_. That's why he chose you to replace Tanglefur, because he knew you could lead ShadowClan." The medicine cat told him firmly. "I was terrified the first time I met StarClan too. I wanted to curl back up in the nursery. I can't tell you what'll happen, it's different for every cat. This is the first time I've ever taken a deputy to become a leader, my mentor only ever told me what to do, there was no training for this." Her voice was edged with unease too. His chest now filled with the weight of guilt for not considering her as well. "But we'll get through this, for our Clan."

Cherrycloud stood and pressed her flank against him with a purr and with a deep breath, Turtlefoot got to his feet and followed the she-cat into the darkness of the Highstones.

Padding through what seemed to be the empty space between the stars themselves, Turtlefoot's fear stabbed through him as a sharp pit in his stomach, but somehow distracted him from the perplexing blackness that surrounded him. The sound of Cherrycloud's paw steps and her scent that was tinged with the aroma of herbs from the medicine cat's den was what kept him from panicking completely. Just as suddenly as he'd been plunged into the darkness, the stone walls widened and a mysterious light began to brighten the cavern. The ceiling grew taller and the space wider as a ray of silver from the night sky shot through an opening onto a rock in the center of the clearing. It glowed with an otherworldly paleness that turned his black tabby coat gray and Cherrycloud's red patches blueish-white tinted.

 _The Moonstone._ Turtlefoot thought as his mouth hung open in awe of the sight. He'd traveled here as an apprentice but he and his mentor had only waited outside, never had he imagined that this was what the rocky structure held.

This really was the border of StarClan's hunting grounds.

"Now, I can only tell you what to do from here." His medicine cat's voice brought him back to reality, along with all his fear. "Go to the Moonstone and lay down in front of it, then, when you're ready, press your muzzle against it and you'll enter StarClan's territory in your dreams."

His throat frozen in the cold light, he merely nodded and approached the stone slowly. The floor of the cave was sparkling with frost and made a shiver run up from his paws as he moved into the brightest part of the light. He slid onto the ground and stared at the rock, half expecting it to move or change colors with its mystical presence. Turtlefoot turned to look at his companion again, like a kit looking back at their parents before becoming an apprentice, waiting for some kind of signal.

The she-cat was almost concealed in the gray walls with the lighting, but her green eyes gave her away. "Don't worry, I'll be here when you wake. You'll have a new name the next time we speak."

Turtlefoot turned himself forwards, and gently bowed his head to press his chin to the coldness of the Moonstone and closed his eyes.

 _For the Clan, for the Clan._ He repeated to himself as he lost all sense of his body, becoming like a limp piece of prey. This lasted for what seemed like moons, then a more loose feeling set in, like he was weightless in the air like a bird.

"Open your eyes young one, you're among your Clanmates now." A warm mew made him flick his ears and stretch his claws.

He opened his eyes and found himself in a plain of blue ground with patches of silvery undergrowth and pale outlines of trees surrounding the clearing with bits of white stardust floating in the air. Looking in front of him, the she-cat who met his eyes made him nearly leap up to the moon and back.

"Brightwhisker! Mother! It's really you?"

The silver-gray tabby let out a mmrrow of laughter, her emerald eyes glowing with affection. "Of course it is. You didn't forget what I looked like so soon, did you?" She'd only been dead for half a moon, killed by the sickness that had taken many lives in the forest.

Turtlefoot was filled with so much happiness with seeing his mother that he barely noticed the crowd of other cats sitting just behind her, murmuring among themselves and greeting him with warm looks. Then another familiar face stepped forward, a brown and white tom with long fur.

"Mousestar!" He exclaimed as his former leader gave him a nod in greeting.

"Yes, we're all here to welcome you as the leader of our great Clan." Mousestar purred, sitting back on his haunches as a tiny figure slipped out from behind Brightwhisker.

It was a kit, black with white paws and several patches across his tiny pelt. "Do you remember me, brother?" He mewed.

Turtlefoot's heart felt a pang of grief at the memory of his long lost sibling. "Of course, you're Rainkit! We used to share a nest together...and we got kitten cough together too... I'm so sorry."

Rainkit seemed unaffected by the memory of his own passing. "It's alright, I'm better now! This isn't about our nursery days, this is about your nine lives! They said I could give you the first one since I'm the youngest!" The little tom chirped excitedly like a sparrow on a newleaf dawn.

He knelt down so that his brother's tiny nose could touch his muzzle. "With this life, I give to you the strength to heal, from battles, disease, and heartbreak alike. Use it to help your Clanmates through their darkest hours, so that they can see the dawn of a new life beginning each day."

A sensation like thorns piecing him all over nearly made him yowl and swat his sibling away, but he ground his teeth so that he only shuttered. This was the way he felt when both Brightwhisker and Mousestar had died, this was what Rainkit wanted him to help ShadowClan through. "Thank you, brother."

The tom-kit nuzzled against his legs and purred before scampering off to sit with his mother again. Next came another face from seasons before; it was Hollydapple, who had been an elder when he was an apprentice.

"Don't worry, you don't have to pick ticks off me this time." The dark spotted she-cat chuckled. Turtlefoot purred in response and bowed his head. "With this life, I give patience, for the young and old. We grow throughout our lives, so give all your Clanmates the time to do so." With the touch of her muzzle, a feeling like a wave swallowing him up and carrying him in an invisible current came over him. _Time moves like a river._ A voice, possibly his own and possibly Hollydapple's told him internally.

"I'll use your gift as well as I can." He promised as the elder moved away before being replaced by a smaller cat, a tabby, who made his heart tighten again. "Oh Dewpaw, I'm so glad to see you again."

It was his old apprentice, a she-cat who'd been killed by a monster while helping chase a fox out of the territory. He'd never fully forgiven himself for her loss. "I still remember everything you taught me, and I lived my life true to the warrior code under your mentorship." Her words soothed his grief as she touched noses with him as they'd done moons ago at her apprenticeship ceremony. "With this life, I give you the power to learn from experience, from others and from yourself. Use it to mentor, to judge, and to care for your Clanmates." This life was like a ripple of excitement that triggered memories of his own first day as an apprentice exploring the territory, his first time at a Gathering, and his first assessment where he caught a pheasant as big as he was.

"Thank you, Dewpaw. I'll never forget all you taught me about being a mentor." Turtlefoot mewed as she turned away to be replaced by another figure. This one he did not know.

It was a dark gray tabby with a white chest and kindly amber eyes. "I am Pebbleheart, I was the first medicine cat of ShadowClan." Turtlefoot stared at him, shocked to be given a life by such an ancient cat, so he straightened himself to receive it as respectfully as he could. "With this life, I give you resilience, to stand up to disease and foes alike, and never give into defeat." The life was like fire burning through his body from his claws to the tip of his tail, the kind of energy that filled him when in combat, and then mixed with a heaviness, like fatigue from sickness. But through both of the sensations, his body stood against it, and he puffed out his chest with the odd new strength he felt.

As he thanked Pebbleheart, another unknown cat padded forward, a pale gray she-cat with lovely fur. "I am Lilystar, I was once leader of ShadowClan." He gave her a respectful nod before lowering his head again. "With this life, I give you wisdom. Wisdom of the cats that have come before you, and the wisdom the cats of today have to offer. Listen, reflect, and observe all you can in this world. This is key for any leader." The life made all his senses come alive all at once; he could hear the breeze rustling the grass of WindClan, he could taste the scaly fish that fed RiverClan, smell the oak trees in ThunderClan, feel the presence of his Clanmates all the way in ShadowClan, and almost touch the earth of the hills that made up SkyClan's territory.

When he looked up to thank Lilystar, Brightwhisker at last was coming towards him, her gaze full of love and pride. "My darling son, I couldn't be prouder of you." She purred as she touched her nose to his. "With this life, I give you the love of a mother, to do whatever it takes to keep those you love safe from harm, as a mother does for her kits." This life surged through him like a deadly mix of anger and desperation, making Turtlefoot wonder if this was how all mothers felt.

"Thank you." He meowed and saw her eyes cloud with a bit of sadness as she began to move away and wrap herself around Rainkit again. "I'll tell Silverclaw and Webpelt that you watch over us all, you too Rainkit!"

As he shared a moment with his kin, an old friend came forward. "Squirrelfoot!"

The dark ginger tom meowed a greeting. He'd died in a battle with ThunderClan, after which Turtlefoot had been made a warrior and named after him. "With this life, I give you courage, to use for your Clan as though you only had a single life to give up, as all your Clanmates do." As his old Clanmate's muzzle touched him, a sensation like running through the forest with the wind at his back rushed through his veins. He felt ready to leap on any prey or enemy he came across, not matter what the cost.

As he thanked the tom, another figure came into view that had only recently joined the ranks of StarClan. It was Longpetal, a sleek, lithe dark brown she-cat who'd only been a warrior for three moons when the sickness that had taken Mousestar and Brightwhisker had killed her. She was now as youthful and strong as she'd looked the day she'd received her warrior name, not as thin and frail as she'd been the day she'd been buried.

"With this life, I give you the necessity of companionship. Living together is what makes us a Clan, so honor each and every cat as though they are your littermate." The life was warm, like other pelts pressing against him or being curled up beside Brightwhisker in the nursery again.

"Thank you, it would have been an honor to be your Clanmate longer." Turtlefoot mewed as Longpetal nodded to him and moved aside for Mousestar to come forward.

The tom's eyes were warm and made any shred of nervousness he had left disappear completely. "I chose you to be deputy because I'd seen you persevere through loss," He flicked his tail towards Dewpaw. "Battle," He looked over to Squirrelfoot briefly. "And sickness," He motioned to Brightwhisker and Rainkit. "All of which harm every cat in every Clan, but you showed the strength to move forward. No matter what happens, ShadowClan must always move forward." Turtlefoot bowed his head for the last time. "With this life, I give you the power of faith. Faith in your Clan to move forward and faith in yourself to lead them there." The life was a spark inside him, that made his tail twitch, his ears prick, and his claws knead the ground under them.

He lifted his head, and all the cats moved closer to him.

Mousestar beamed at him and declared, "I hail you by your new name, Turtlestar! Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and StarClan grants you the guardianship of ShadowClan. Defend it well; care for young and old; honor your ancestors and the traditions of the warrior code; live each life with pride and dignity."

Turtlestar was then cheered by all the cats present by his new name. "Turtlestar! Turtlestar! Turtlestar!"

Dewpaw and Rainkit ran around him calling out his name, Brightwhisker came over to her son and licked his ear. Squirrelfoot, Longpetal, and Hollydapple sat close together watching the sight happily. But Pebbleheart, Lilystar, and Mousestar sat in front of him still, all in a row, and their joy seemed to be fading fast. Lilystar gave Dewpaw a look, and the tabby she-cat picked up Rainkit and padded away with Brightwhisker to sit with the other StarClan cats.

"We're sorry to cut into your celebration," Pebbleheart said with a grave sound in his voice. "But we must tell you something."

"Seasons ago, I was given a prophecy that one would be born into ShadowClan that would have a destiny that would save all the Clans." Mousestar added. "You are that cat, Turtlestar. The time has come for the prophecy to come to pass."

Lilystar stepped closer, the plain they stood in darkened, and small black shapes seemed to slink all around the cats. Turtlestar looked around in alarm, but the StarClan cats stayed still as stone. "Five. One of each place in the Clans; one a gentle beast, one a sturdy tree, one as old as fear, one as swift as a breeze, and one that shines like a black star. They will save us against the silver-tongued prey."

Before Turtlestar could respond, he found himself opening his eyes to the brightness of the Moonstone.


	3. Chapter 2

_Five. One of each place in the Clans; one a gentle beast, one a sturdy tree, one as old as fear, one as swift as a breeze, and one that shines like a black star. They will save us against the silver-tongued prey._

* * *

Scrabbling to his paws, Turtlestar looked all around himself disoriented in the pale cavern. Cherrycloud padded forward from the edge of the tunnel they'd entered from.

"Welcome back, Turtlestar." The she-cat mewed with a bow of her head that made his pelt burn with embarrassment at hearing his new name. "Congratulations, you are now leader of ShadowClan!"

Shaking his fur out from the odd sleep he'd just had, a jolt went through the tom as he remembered what the StarClan cats had said.

"Something happened, after they gave me my nine lives." He explained as his medicine cat's eyes widened. "I think they gave me a prophecy, and they gave it to Mousestar before...it wasn't just for our Clan, it was for all the Clans in the forest. It sounded like a warning. And the enemy they must have been talking about was there too, but I couldn't see them clearly-" The thought occurred that the ShadowClan camp was still in mourning for Mousestar and could be easily attacked. "We have to get back to camp, we have to prepare for them!"

"Slow down!" Cherrycloud hissed at him as he was about to bolt through the tunnel. "You're meowing on like a kit who's just seen a hawk for the first time! Start again, slowly."

 _I don't need to be scolded like a kit too._ Turtlestar twitched his tail in frustration. He told her what had happened after the ceremony's completion, about the ancient leader's ominous words and the creatures that stirred all around the StarClan cats, whose beady eyes glowed with an indescribable evil. The she-cat listened, her fur ruffling with unease but she remained straight and calm.

"So what do I do?" The tom asked, realizing afterwards that he sounded like an apprentice about to receive a punishment. He was leader now and he couldn't keep whining like a soft kittypet!

"You go back to ShadowClan and lead them." Cherrycloud said firmly while getting to her paws. "This prophecy will take time to decipher, and some prophecies aren't understood until after they've past. The best thing we can do is go home and carry on like normal."

"How can I just "lead" when there's something that could attack us any sunrise!" Turtlestar growled.

Cherrycloud's green eyes flashed at him. "You were given nine lives to stand up to any horror that came our way, or have you already forgotten what StarClan told you?" Her sharp words made his fur bristle with a mix of anger and shame. "ShadowClan is still recovering from this...Carrioncough that's been rampaging through the forest, if you suddenly announce that little black monsters with twinkling eyes are coming after them too, the queens would flee to be kittypets and the rest might desert us to be rouges!"

He gave a deep sigh and thought of his Clanmates; Nettlepaw, Talonflight, and Rabbitwhisker were all still staying in the medicine cat's den recovering themselves from the ordeal that Carrioncough brought with its chills, fever, and fatigue like death. It had killed six of their Clanmates, and countless others in the neighboring Clans. It was pure luck that the two medicine cats in RiverClan had found an herb combination to help fight the disease. Even so, that remedy had come too late for many.

The she-cat was right, they deserved at least a short time of peace before charging into a new battle, this one they knew even less about.

"I'm sorry, I just want to keep them safe. I don't want to fail." He muttered, looking upwards to the hole to the sky where the claw-moon was receding and the stars seemed to be gently leading it along. Some of those stars were perhaps those who had just given him his nine lives and he was more terrified of failing them than anyone.

Cherrycloud softened her gaze. "As long as you follow the path that seems best for your Clan, you can never fail, Turtlestar."

He nodded in response, then followed her as they entered the darkness of the tunnel again. When they emerged, the horizon was fading to shades of blue as dawn began to roll across the clouds. The journey seemed less tense this time with Turtlestar walking alongside his Clanmate instead of following her as though in a dream. The ground became covered in brown grass again as they approached the Thunderpath, which was nearly blocked off with dirty piles of frozen snow that Twoleg monsters had piled up there throughout the cold moons. The two followed the icy wall down a ways, both jumping at the occasional glare of a monster's eyes as it raced along, which was made extra bright with the snow crystals to send the light in all directions.

When the sky was paler with the tiny twinkle of stars fading, they had gone up the slope that led to the smaller Thunderpath that bordered ShadowClan. The smell of pine and marshy undergrowth filled Turtlestar's nostrils and made him even more impatient to return to his home. _Only I won't be just a warrior returning home, I'll be the leader returning._ He thought huffing out white breathe as he and Cherrycloud scampered up onto the snow wall to see clearly before they dared to cross the Thunderpath.

The frost had tempered the harsh smell it usually had and no signs of monsters could be seen or heard.

"Let's go, before my tail freezes off." Cherrycloud meowed while sliding down from the ice bank which brought a shower of snow down onto the she-cat.

Turtlestar bit his tongue to conceal a mmrrow of laughter as the red-splotched medicine cat cursed and shook her pelt furiously. He jumped down more carefully beside her before quickly darting across the Thunderpath and climbing up the smaller snow wall on the other side to finally leap down into familiar land. The tom raked his claws into the hard ground in relief to be back in ShadowClan.

 _Even if this prophecy is about all the Clans, my priority will always be ShadowClan. They make me who I am, the warrior I've been and now the leader I'm to become._

A nervousness twitched in Turtlestar's whiskers as they approached the hollow. It would be his first time arriving as leader. Bright sunshine was streaming through the sky now, sparkling the frozen earth all around. It seemed like a perfect scene to begin leadership though he didn't fully agree with his ability to do so. Before they went towards the thorn tunnel that served as the entrance to the camp, Cherrycloud stopped and turned to him.

"Remember, don't mention what StarClan told you to anyone else yet, or mention any of the cats who gave you lives, it's meant to be in confidence with StarClan." She mewed with a seriousness in her tone. "I'll tell Moonbriar maybe once I think it over more, but I'll talk to you again before that."

His heart sank a bit that he couldn't tell his father and sister that he'd seen their kin. "Why would you tell Moonbriar?"

The she-cat narrowed her eyes. "You named her your deputy before we left, remember?"

His fur bristled in embarrassment at asking such a mouse-brained thing. "Of course, it was just a long day yesterday..."

The day before seemed like a faded nursery memory. Mousestar had nearly been a medicine cat apprentice during the outbreak of Carrioncough, bringing water to the sick and encouraging his Clanmates to eat to try and regain some strength. He caught the disease three times over, losing his final three lives in just two moons.

They'd left him to sleep peacefully alone after Cherrycloud had given him a dose of herbs to try and heal him, but StarClan had claimed him in their absence. The sun was beginning its decent as Turtlestar had helped carry him into the clearing where he'd had to announce that the tom was dead. All their eyes filled with grief, the cats had formed a ring around him, each at least resting their chin on the old leader's head in respect and giving thanks for his seasons of service to the Clan.

His grown kits, Birchstrike and Hazelflower, groomed their father's pelt gently as though he were a napping kit himself. Cherrycloud had asked the others to make sure that the she-cat didn't stay up the entire night for the vigil since she was expecting little ones of her own and needed rest.

Turtlestar, or Turtlefoot then, announced to his Clanmates that he would set off to the Moonstone immediately so he could gain the blessing of StarClan to lead them into a new season after such harsh moons. They'd cheered for him, calling him by a leader's name before he'd been granted it.

Now it was time to keep the promise he'd made to them.

The black tabby slipped through the thorns in a way only ShadowClan cats knew. Like many things throughout the territory, it was in order to keep them more secure in case of invasion. The hollow of the camp was a welcome sight after Turtlestar's journey; it was surrounded by thick thorns and briers on the outer side with some large stones that made lovely cave dens for the medicine cat and apprentice's on the interior wall. Several pine trees shaded the hollow with one large oak tree with a root den for the leader and a large bramble bush to the side of it that was the warrior's den. A few tail lengths beyond that was a woven den against one of the boulders for the elders close to the tunnel leading to the dirtplace. A small hollow behind the stones protected by a large thorn bush was the nursery, the safest and driest location. In the center of the clearing was a smooth stone for the leader to call Clan meetings and in front of that was the fresh-kill pile, which was mostly empty at the moment. The ground was hard and slightly damp from the frosty night, but the sun was gleaming down through the trees making it glow like a star in the sky.

Turtlestar and Cherrycloud met Foxfang still standing beside the entrance from night watch, his thick dark ginger coat shining like leaf-fall in the morning light as he bowed his head to welcome them.

"It's great to have you both back." The tom purred. "Welcome home, Cherrycloud, and you _Turtlestar_." He lifted his green eyes to them.

Turtlestar padded over to the tom and touched his flank with his tail. "There's no need for all the formalities, I have a different name true, but I'm still your Clanmate." The tom straightened up at his words. "Where's Moonbriar?"

"Out getting water for the cats still recovering from sickness." He meowed while swaying his tail on ground. "She should be back any moment. She organized the dawn and sunhigh patrols, along with a hunting party for after the dawn patrol returns. Webpelt is leading the patrol now with Duskheart, Smokefur, and Leopardpaw."

This report made Turtlestar's chest relax a bit. He'd been wise to choose Moonbriar as deputy, she'd always been organized and thoughtful. She'd mentored his sister, Silverclaw, moons ago and had never faltered in her dedication to ShadowClan. "That's great." He mewed. "Now go wake your replacement, you look like an owl that kept waiting at a mousehole for three sunrises."

The warrior's heavy eyes merely blinked. "No, I'm fine for a while longer. Ashwing was next, but he stayed up most of the night comforting Hazelflower."

"Ashwing is a loyal warrior and mate and will make a good father," Cherrycloud sat beside Foxfang, touching her pelt to his. "But you deserve rest as well. Go sleep, with the two of us back the camp will be plenty secure."

The tom opened his mouth to argue, but padded away when Cherrycloud raised her tail to quiet him and firmly stated that it was an order from his medicine cat.

Cherrycloud mewed with triumph. "They never argue with me once I say that!"

Turtlestar purred in amusement before crossing to the warriors den to peer inside. Most were curled up tightly in their nests against the cold, except for Foxfang who was just settling in and the tortoiseshell she-cat, Willownose, who was stretching with a yawn about exit the den. She bowed respectfully to him as she passed before settling in a patch of sun to groom her shoulder.

"Welcome back, _Turtlestar_." She mewed. _How long before everyone can say that without sounding so stiff?_ "I trust your journey to the Highstones with Cherrycloud went well?"

"As well as having to cross Thunderpaths can go," He answered. "How were things in camp last night?"

"Oh just fine...or, as fine as they could be." She muttered with an edge of sorrow in her voice. "I know Birchstrike went with Grayfall and Icepounce to bury Mousestar a bit ago, I heard them telling Moonbriar. They didn't want to announce it to the Clan because they didn't want Hazelflower to know. Poor dear, she only got to sleep a little after moonhigh."

Turtlestar walked with the she-cat across the clearing as more cats stirred with the sunshine growing stronger.

"There's a lizard or two left on the fresh-kill pile. Blackflame, Sweetpaw and I popped out around dusk yesterday to catch a bit of prey for everyone since the patrols were disrupted due to everything. I made sure there was a little something left for you and Cherrycloud when you got back. I'm leading the hunting patrol so they'll be more soon." She purred warmly as they approached the fern patch near the medicine cat's den where the ill cats were being kept.

Nettlepaw, the light brown and ginger apprentice, was curled up asleep and nasally snoring. He hadn't eaten in three days when the sickness was at his its height, but he'd eaten half of a sparrow the day before.

The she-cat put her paw on the tom's forehead gently to not wake him. She was an experienced mother and often helped Cherrycloud in addition to her warrior duties. "No fever, thank StarClan for that. I put Rabbitwhisker inside Cherrycloud's den last night because his fevers haven't let up quite yet. Another round of herbs will hopefully see him through."

He purred in agreement as she checked on Talonflight whose spiky fur poked out of her nest in the ferns. She stirred and lifted her head to look at Turtlestar.

"Our new leader!" She meowed weakly. "Congratulations, er...well yes, congratulations. Though we all will miss Mousestar...and Longpetal. And all of them."

Her sunken eyes were filled with grief for her littermate who'd been killed by the Carrioncough. The leader wanted dearly to tell her that her sister was well now and watching over her, but knew he couldn't since his nine lives ceremony was so sacred. "Your sister was a great warrior. She watches over us all now."

Talonflight's eyes brightened and she purred. "I want to go back to being a warrior so she won't think I've joined the elder's den." She got to her paws shakily then fell back on her haunches.

"Not so fast," Willownose interjected. "You're no where near strong enough to go out of camp yet. You look as though you haven't eaten in a half-moon." She touched the visible ribs of the she-cat with the tip of her tail.

"I'm not going to sit around getting fat like a kittypet!" Talonflight growled.

"Me neither!" Nettlepaw suddenly added, poking his head out of the ferns. "Leopardpaw and Acornpaw will be _seasons_ ahead of me in training if I don't get back to my duties soon! They'll become warriors before I do!"

Willownose sighed while Turtlestar raised his tail to silence both of them. "Once the hunting patrol returns later and you two get something in your stomachs, I'll ask Cherrycloud to give you both some tasks around her den. That way you'll get exercise but be able to rest when you need to."

The two impatient young cats muttered in agreement and Willownose gave a nod in thanks before turning continuing to question the ill. He turned and padded around to the dugout entrance of the medicine cats den and dipped inside. The cool mix of stone and soil lingered with the smell of herbs and berries that Cherrycloud kept neatly stored in smoothed sided holes deep in the back of the cave to keep dry in case of leaks from rain. The she-cat's nest was mostly dried ferns filled with moss and feathers that the apprentices brought her regularly. In a smaller nest on the other side of the cave laid Rabbitwhisker, a well-built light brown tom, who was licking his pelt while Cherrycloud was preparing a batch of herbs for him to take.

"Now, there's a bit of catmint for flavor, but I have to save some in case of more cats falling ill." The red and white she-cat was explain as she gently folded the shredded leaves together on a piece of bark with her clawtips. "The rest is hawkweed, feverfew, juniper berries, and a some sorrel to build up your appetite." She turned and mewed a greeting to her leader. "Later I should really go out with some help to find some more juniper berries and lavender. Thank StarClan Liondapple figured out that this needed to be treated with several strong medicines all at once, we may have lost more without-"

She was interrupted by the loud coughing Rabbitwhisker was making while trying to force his medicine down. "Greetings. Turtlestar. I hope. You're. Journey went well?"

"It did thanks, I'm back and ready to serve my Clan." He meowed as the warrior coughed a juniper berry up whole. "I heard you're still trying to shake off your illness?"

The tom chewed the berry up, gagging and cringing at the bitter taste. "I'll soon be back on my feet!"

Cherrycloud snorted. "You make more of a fuss about taking your herbs than your son does."

Rabbitwhisker chuckled and curled his tail around himself as a bout of chills came over him. "Nettlepaw's always too stubborn to admit he's in discomfort."

"I wonder where he gets it from." The voice of Moonbriar came from behind them. She was carrying a bundle of damp moss in her jaws and took it to her sickly Clanmate to let him drink. "When you were an apprentice, you went all the the way to a Gathering and back with a thorn in your back paw because you didn't want to stay behind. It was almost too far in to be pulled out!"

"Moonbriar, the elders tell a story about how when you were a kit and had white cough, you spat a poultice back into my mentor's eyes." Cherrycloud teased with a pleasant mmrrow.

The deputy's fur bristled slightly, but she ended up laughing as well. Turtlestar beckoned her to follow him out of the cave while Cherrycloud went back to her herb sorting.

"Thank you for keeping the camp from plunging into chaos while I was gone." He mewed gratefully. The camp was buzzing with activity now; the dawn patrol had returned, Birchstrike was heading towards the warrior's den wearily with Webpelt, both talking about getting some well-earned sleep. Leopardpaw was sharing tongues with his mother, Maplestorm, by the apprentice's cave while Willownose was gathering Briarstep, Ashwing, Darkbird, Featherpaw, and Acornpaw to go on hunting patrol. Blackflame had taken over guard duty by the camp entrance while her apprentice, Sweetpaw, was dragging out the elder's bedding to be changed. "It's good for all of us to feel like it's a normal day. I'll call a Clan meeting to discuss all that's happened with them after the sunhigh patrol."

The silver-dappled she-cat purred in agreement. "It'll take some time for us all to get used to this," She said while looking out onto the hollow with him. "If there's anything else I can do, just tell me, Turtlestar. Go and rest awhile now." She bowed her head then walked over to Sweetpaw to give her some help with the bedding.

His own tiredness was finally setting in, but another pang of grief for all that had happened in the previous moons hit him when he suddenly realized that he should be heading for the leader's den and not the bramble bush. _Mousestar is gone, you are now leader. You have to help ShadowClan move forward._ The black tabby crossed to the large oak tree and slipped in under the roots. He almost yowled in alarm when he crashed into his sister, Silverclaw, who was just about to leave.

"You mouse-brain! Those nine lives didn't make you any less clumsy I see." Silverclaw grumbled as she straightened her fur. "I was just adding some extra moss to your new nest." Her annoyance faded and her silver-gray pelt brushed past him and she briefly pressed her muzzle against her sibling's shoulder. "I'm glad you're home, and I'm proud of you. You'll make ShadowClan proud."

Turtlestar purred and nuzzled his sister's ear. He padded over to the warm looking nest of dried pine needles and moss. "I'm glad to be home. Thanks for making my nest, too."

"Oh I didn't." The she-cat responded as she poked her head back in.

He flicked his tail in surprise. "The apprentices?"

"Well Hazelflower took Mousestar's bedding out last night, she wanted to surround him with it." She recalled sadly. "But Darkbird woke up from the vigil early to make it up for you. She _borrowed_ some lavender from Cherrycloud's store to get rid of poor Mousestar's sick smell, so you'd be more comfortably she said. She asked me to add a bit more moss because she had to go hunting." Her emerald eyes flashed with amusement. "I think she really did all this to get over the heartbreak of not having a nest next to yours anymore."

"What do you mean by that?"

His sister merely rolled her eyes and padded out of the den. Turtlestar inhaled deeply and did find the tinge of Darkbird's scent among the pine needles and...surely enough, small bits of lavender. He reminded himself to thank the she-cat later as he settled down in the soft nest.

Mousestar's scent still hung around the den, but in a way it comforted him as he remembered what the old tom had told him while giving him his final life. His heart did tighten a bit at the memory of the warning he'd given as well, and knew deep down that he had to start trying to understand the prophecy if he was going to lead ShadowClan into the future or the mysterious black shapes from the vision would destroy them.


	4. Chapter 3

_Five. One of each place in the Clans; one a gentle beast, one a sturdy tree, one as old as fear, one as swift as a breeze, and one that shines like a black star. They will save us against the silver-tongued prey._

 ***Author's note: In this section, the other Clans of the forest will be shown during the span of time leading up to where we left Turtlestar off in the last chapter. It begins just as the sun is beginning to set on the Clans the day before and ends with the dawn that Turtlestar and Cherrycloud returned to ShadowClan.**

* * *

 _Finchpaw jumped over a boulder and landed on her paws clumsily just as another swarm of creatures was about to cover her._ _She shook off the few that had grabbed hold of her pelt with their fiery eyes ablaze; how much longer could she keep running before they finally made crowfood out of her?_

 _She came to a clearing and looked around for the terror that she knew would strike again._ _The forest was twisted branches and undergrowth and was colored a sickly yellow and black. She didn't know which way camp was from here, or even if she was in ThunderClan's territory._

 _"Stop running, Finchstar, you coward!" A cold, grainy voice spat from all directions. "You lied to me, now you pay the price."  
_

 _Fear tingling in every inch of her pelt, she ran down one of the dark paths between the gloomy brambles and yowled as the black swarms with their tiny eyes like fire closed in on her from both sides. Frantically, she veered to the side and leapt over a bush, praying to StarClan that the swarm wouldn't catch her. She dodged them barely and they kept after her._

 _The she-cat came to another ugly clearing with a thick floor of mud and an old tree with jagged branches staring accusingly down at her. Finchpaw tried to run past it, but her paws became trapped in the muck, slowly sinking in deeper. While she writhed trying to pull herself out, the black swarm began to circle her, clicking their horrid fangs together like crickets._

 _Then from a hole in the tree, one huge black thing came out._ _He snarled at her coldly as his swarms descended upon her. She tried to fight back, but they pulled her down as their leader seemed to cackle in joy._

 _Turning to her side while clawing desperately at her attackers, a shiny puddle in the mud showed her reflection. But it wasn't her...it couldn't be...it was a tabby, a gray tabby! Even her eyes were amber instead of green!_

 _"Now you see yourself, Finchstar! A coward!"_

Finchpaw nearly fell into the small pool of the medicine cat's den when she jumped up from Oakspots prodding her awake.

"Great StarClan!" The medicine cat hissed in shock at the young cat's reaction. "You would have thought I'd put fire ants in your pelt!"

Finchpaw shook herself and stared down at her paws in embarrassment. "Sorry..." The other cats in the den stirred in their nests and Slateleg glared at her and snorted before burying himself in the moss again.

"It's alright, bad dreams are common when you're ill." The mottled tom meowed more gently. "Your fever has gone down at least, are you hungry?"

She shrugged her shoulders before smoothing her ruffled fur with her tongue. She hadn't been hungry in a moon, she'd only eaten a mouse or part of a sparrow every other day to keep her mother, Dawnshine, from going mad with the worry. She'd served several sleepless nights staring down at Finchpaw in her nest since she'd gotten Carrioncough.

Oakspots sighed. "Well, maybe tomorrow you'll-"

"Mama! Finchpaw tried to fly like a real finch!" Mewed little Shrewkit from across the den with his mother.

The raspy voice of Honeyfall tried silenced him. "She was just having a bad dream again."

"She was talking too, Oakspots! She said she was Finchstar, she's not even deputy! Stripedfeather is!" The tom-kit carried on, dashing around the nest like a freshly woken squirrel.

"Now Shrewkit that's enough! It's not polite to say such ridiculous things about your Clanmates, especially with them only tail-lengths away!" The she-cat hissed, making her son stop in his tracks and curl up in his little nest to pout.

Finchpaw felt a pang of sympathy for the little tom; he'd been stuck in the medicine cat's den for almost a moon now and had barely been able to lift his head to swallow Oakspots' herbs when his sickness was at its height. She could understand why he wanted to have some excitement for once.

"He's probably well enough to go back to the nursery now." Oakspots told the queen as he soaked some moss in the pool and brought it for her to drink. "He hasn't had the fevers in three sunrises and his energy is certainly back..."

"I can't leave poor Shadowfur with five kits! She'll-"

Finchpaw decided to stretch her legs outside, partially because of Honeyfall's fussing and because it seemed like seasons since she'd been outside the medicine cat's den.

The sun was beginning to drop lower in the sky and the sunset was shining through the ferns and gorse that sheltered the ravine. It was cold, and she could see her breath, but it was warmer than it had been when she had last ventured out. A hunting part was just bringing fresh-kill in; it was a larger haul then usual, a sign that perhaps newleaf was finally beginning to come to the forest. She saw her father, Moletail, drop a sparrow and two scrawny voles on the pile, which made his hungry-eyed Clanmates mutter similar wishful thoughts.

It had been a hard first leaf-bare for the apprentice, and a hard one for even the most experienced warriors. The amount of snow had been one thing, but this plague of sickness had devastated all the Clans. Carrioncough had killed Shrewkit's brother, Springkit, four elders, and two warriors so far in ThunderClan, and Oakspots den still had five patients; Honeyfall, Shrewkit, Pebblefur, Slateleg, and herself.

She'd never truly thought she was going to die, it only felt like a fever that ruined her appetite no matter how much the medicine cats and her kin fussed over her. But the dream she'd just had, that had been another story. It was the third one like it and each time she'd woken up half the camp yowling out some nonsense about the swarms of black creatures. _If this keeps up they'll send me to Snakerocks to sleep!_

Suddenly the excited shriek of Shrewkit came from behind her as he scampered passed and Oakspots came to sit beside her.

"Guess you won with Honeyfall?" Finchpaw asked.

The gray and brown tom purred with a glow of amusement in his eyes as they watched Shrewkit dash towards the nursery where his sister, Sandykit, had been staying with Shadowfur's lively litter of three.

"Get back!" Petalkit hissed as he bounded towards them. "You're sick!"

"You can't be here! You'll get us sick!" Sootkit added.

"Oakspots says I'm not sick anymore!" The little silver tabby chirped.

Shadowfur, who'd been sharing a vole with Tigerkit and Sandykit, swooped her tail around the other two to quiet them and looked over towards the medicine cat, who gave her a nod, before her gaze brightened to welcome the tom-kit.

"It's good to have you back, Shrewkit! Are you hungry?" The black she-cat asked warmly as he began to scuffled with the other kits as though he'd only been gone for a moment.

Finchpaw heard Oakspots let out a sigh of relief to have the boisterous kit out of his pelt. His eyes were drooping with tiredness and he fluffed himself out against a cold murmur of wind that came across the camp. His mentor, Meadowtuft, had died trying to save the senior warrior, Podfrost, and two of the elders by not leaving their side for six sunrises. The tom had assumed all the medicine cat responsibilities without any fear it had seemed, but at this moment, she could see how much the burden was weighing on him.

He turned to her. "What about these nightmare of yours?"

"What about them?" Finchpaw responded while scratching her shoulder. "They're just caused by the fevers like you said."

"But have they been the same every time?" The tom probed, curiosity in his gaze.

Why did he want to know so badly? "Yes, the same kind of monster-thing but, a little different setup..." She muttered.

Oakspots leaned closer. "Have there been cats in your dreams, telling you things?"

"No." _Unless that **thing** is supposed to be a cat. _ She shivered at the memory of the leader of the black swarm, his eyes like embers and his voice as rough as a thorn bush.

The tom looked away in what seemed to be embarrassment. "Er, nevermind. Come back inside, the cold isn't good for you."

Puzzled by his questions, Finchpaw followed him in and got a drink from the pool before settling back down in her nest. Beside her, Slateleg was snoring nasally, and Pebblefur was grooming his bony pelt quietly in his nest while Honeyfall was resting with heavy breathing and rheumy eyes. Oakspots began preparing another batch of herbs for her to take, which made her fur prickle at the thought of having to force down more juniper berries.

Just as he was sitting the dose in front of Finchpaw and mewing some encouragement about getting back to eating mice instead of leaves, Flowerstar, the leader of ThunderClan, came into the den.

"Geetings, Flowerstar!" Finchpaw mewed while eyeing the bundle of herbs with dread. The leader gave her a small nod, twitching her tail back and forth with her dark cream pelt bristling slightly.

Oakspots bowed his head to the she-cat. "What can I do for you?"

"How are our Clanmates recovering?" She asked. Her gaze was burning with urgency and her tone hinted the same.

"I was able to send Shrewkit back to the nursery, Honeyfall could use some peace and quiet to help her get back on her paws. Pebblefur and Finchpaw's fevers have been less severe, and Finchpaw's strength seems to be returning." The tom flicked his tail towards the apprentice just as she braced herself to swallow the herbs. The cat-mint tasted delicious but the bitter juniper berries and feverfew made her gag slightly, making the medicine cat give a slight chuckle. "Slateleg...has been resting plenty. The feverfew and lavender has helped him sleep through the night again."

"That's all excellent news, Meadowtuft will be looking down proudly at you from StarClan." The she-cat mewed trying to be polite, but had a harsh edge of anxiousness. "How is your herb stock? Do you need more?"

Oakspots thought for a moment. "Maybe some feverfew-"

"Then I want you to get them as soon as possible." The she-cat commanded, her tone firm. "I want you to go to RiverClan tomorrow and ask for extra supplies from their medicine cats. I'll send Ravenmoon with you there and to WindClan and SkyClan. ShadowClan two sunrises from now."

Finchpaw pricked her ears in surprised by Flowerstar's sudden panic over herbs. She hadn't been this frantic during the height of the sickness, why the sudden push for extra supplies?

Oakspots' tail twitched uncomfortably like a new apprentice being quizzed by their mentor on their second tour of the territory. "Uh, I'm not sure if it's, wise, to go asking around for herbs at this time. When Liondapple discovered the herb mixture, she shared it with all of us and we made sure among the five Clans that we had enough for each case we had, but now with...fewer cats infected-"

"I don't think you understand me, Oakspots, I know that the relationships between medicine cats are different than the warrior code usually allows, but this is an order from your leader." Flowerstar snapped with a thrash of her tail across the sandy floor. "We have to be prepared for whatever comes our way. Leaf-bare may be _nearly_ over, but if you just look around you can see that this Carrioncough isn't over with your Clanmates." She shifted her serious gaze to Finchpaw for a moment, who'd stayed silent watching the two older cats. She'd never seen her leader or the young medicine cat like this. "ThunderClan mustn't lose any more lives this season!"

The mottled tom's pelt began to bristle. "RiverClan lost an _entire_ litter of kits to this plague! Plus their entire elders den, and their leader! I understand where my loyalty lies, but going around asking for supplies that aren't necessary won't be the best for keeping the peace."

Flowerstar unsheathed her claws while a hiss from Honeyfall could be heard on the other side of the den, obviously angered by Oakspots referring to RiverClan kits like they were of more value than the son she'd lost.

"This is necessary, this disease is still just as deadly as it was before RiverClan discovered the remedy!" The leader continued impatiently. "ShadowClan lost three more lives to Carrioncough. We can't take any chances."

Finchpaw's jaw dropped as Oakspots hissed out something in disbelief. _Could it really still be that bad in ShadowClan?_ She wondered silently as she watched the two argue.

"How do you know that?" He challenged. "Did your patrol check the ShadowClan burial grounds?"

The she-cats eyes darkened. "Mousestar is dead."

Her words sent a ripple of shock through the den, waking Slateleg from his doze and making Finchpaw's fur stand on end. She'd only seen the ShadowClan leader once at the Gathering before she'd caught Carrioncough.

He'd waged battle against rouges the leaf-fall she'd become an apprentice and had been daring to try and steal prey from the snakerocks from ThunderClan seasons before she'd been born. Mousestar hadn't seemed ill, though he did admit that they'd lost several Clanmates to the disease.

"I was on dusk patrol and we went close to the Thunderpath. Cherrycloud was leading Turtlefoot along the other side, towards the Highstones. They were alone." The leader continued. "The wind carried over their scent markers, they weren't fresh, like their own dusk patrol hadn't been out. The Clan was in their camp mourning for Mousestar. No fresh markers and only the medicine cat and the deputy heading out of the territory...what else could it have been?"

Oakspots sighed deeply, raking his claws over the earth. Honeyfall was now talking to Pebblefur in whispers about the news and Slateleg twitched his tail uncomfortably. Finchpaw looked at all them, unsure of whether to say anything. She'd heard the warriors discussing that Mousestar had boldly announced when challenging WindClan at a Gathering that he had three lives to spare. That had only been three or so moons past. It was the second leader dead this lead-bare. Driftstar of RiverClan was the first causality of Carrioncough, and the odds of it also being the cause of Mousestar's death were like betting on whether a sparrow could fly better then a rabbit.

"Those fish breathed mange-pelts were where Carrioncough started! It's the least they can do to give us a few berries!" Slateleg suddenly spat while struggling to sit up in his nest, breaking the silence at last.

Pebblefur and Honeyfall murmured in agreement while Finchpaw got to her paws to help the gray warrior beside her steady himself. He blinked gratefully at her before they both turned back to the high ranking cats.

"I see why you wanted me to wait to visit ShadowClan..." Oakspots muttered dryly.

"I grieve for the lives lost in the other Clans too, but we must think of our own Clanmates first." Flowerstar held his gaze.

"I'll set out for RiverClan now, while the sun is still shining." The tom said while getting to his paws. "I don't need an escort."

"Suit yourself," The she-cat responded. "But I don't want you going into their camp."

Oakspots scowled. "How am I supposed to ask for supplies then?"

"We already lost Meadowtuft, I can't afford to lose you too!" The dark cream she-cat meowed impatiently. "You're friendly with Liondapple and Chestnutfur, ask one of them to fetch them for you, unless their legs are broken too."

With a snort, their leader exited and Oakspots grumbled something under his breath before fetching some herbs to give Slateleg and Pebblefur before he left for RiverClan.

"Let this be a lesson to you, Finchpaw." Slateleg told her while weakly padding over to the pool for a drink. "The leader is the word of the warrior code, so unless they say something that goes completely against it, you do as they say."

She merely nodded to the ill warrior as he settled down again. She went over the pool and looked into the water; she was the same dark brown she-cat she'd been before, and not the leader she'd dreamed she was. The memory made her shutter, after seeing just how complex the position of leader could be up close.

* * *

"Liondapple! There's an invader and he's asking for you!" The sound of Goosepaw bursting into the medicine cat's den nearly made Liondapple's patient, Crystalwing, jump through the roof of sedge and reeds.

"It isn't an invader you frog-brain! It's another medicine cat!" Meowed his sister, Ivypaw, who came bounding in beside him. "Our mentors told us to tell you since Chestnutfur's gone to get fresh bedding with Reedpaw and Shortpaw!"

Liondapple raised her tail to silence them and coaxed the she-cat to eat her sorrel to assist her returning appetite before turning back to the bouncy siblings. "A medicine cat from where?" She asked.

"He said he's from ThunderClan." Ivypaw reported, her black and white pelt bristling with excitement.

"It's a tom, gray and brown!" Goosepaw added before getting shoved by his sister.

"It's obvious he's a tom if I said _he._ " She hissed.

"He could have been lying! I'm trying to save us from invasion!" Goosepaw retorted while puffing out his chest.

Liondapple rolled her eyes as the two bickered. They'd only been apprenticed for a moon and a half and hadn't seen many other cats from the neighboring Clans, but did they have to carry on like kits?

"I see you've gotten the news," Dewcloud mewed as she appeared in the entrance way, the sunset's rays shining on her fur. "Leafstone's gone to tell Robinstar and Aldercloud. It's Oakspots of ThunderClan, asking for you and Chestnutfur to discuss medicine cat business, but he said he couldn't come into camp with us, or so he said. Berrythorn is watching him on the riverbank just past the stepping stones."

Turning to make sure that Crystalwing had swallowed all of the herbs, the silver and white tabby nodded at her. "I'm alright, thank you, Liondapple. I'll look after Shadewillow and Otterpelt while you're away, don't worry."

She thanked Crystalwing and the patrol members before leaving the den.

The evening light was reflecting off the river and the lingering patches of snow and making RiverClan's camp glow. Warriors were sharing tongues and eating together while the youngest members, Fernkit and Bearkit, were scampering around a pile of snow and pretending it was an attacking badger while their parents, Streamfur and Nightshimmer beamed at them from a few tail-lengths away. She eyed the fresh-kill pile and noted a handsome looking carp and hoped that it would still be there when she returned.

Making her way down the well-trodden grassy path that had been browned by leaf-bare, she spotted the familiar mottled tom from ThunderClan, along with Berrythorn and the deputy, Aldercloud.

"Greetings, Oakspots." She mewed warmly, though she could see his anxiety burning in his gaze and ruffling across his pelt. "Are your Clanmates still responding well to the herbs?"

"Yes, a kit returned to his denmates in the nursery today." He replied. "And the apprentice who we were worried for is on the mend, the others are also improving."

Liondapple purred at the good news and Aldercloud mewed warmly as well, Berrythorn remained silent, obviously distrustful of the outsider.

"However," The tom continued. "We're still worried of the sickness making a comeback during this last moon or so of leaf-bare."

"As we all are." Aldercloud meowed. "What brings you to our territory, Oakspots?"

The ThunderClan cat took in a long breathe before he answered. "I'm running low on juniper berries and feverfew, and I was wondering if you had some to spare."

Berrythorn growled and unsheathed his claws. "You came here to take our medicine and wouldn't even set foot in our camp? Think we're diseased like crowfood? You have more sick cats then we do!"

Aldercloud hissed a warning to the tom and stepped between him and the medicine cat. Flaring his nostrils, Berrythorn stalked away to sit by river to shred a stalk of withered reed with his claws.

"Are you in desperate need of these herbs? We share the same fears of Carrioncough as your Clan does," The deputy said, her gaze narrowing. "Even more so in some ways."

Her darkened tone made Liondapple's heart lurch at the memory of their old black and white leader, Driftstar, who'd lost his final life in the initial outbreak of the disease and also Sagefrost and Puddlestem's kits, all three of whom had died, and their mother had died of sickness and grief shortly after. Oakspots mentor, Meadowtuft, a pleasant older she-cat, had also died.

"Yes. We're in great need of it." Oakspots said while twisting his tail around his paws a bit awkwardly.

 _He's lying._ They'd known each other for seasons, they'd both become apprentices and met StarClan together at the Highstones on the same half-moon. _But why_ _?_

Aldercloud stared the tom down for a moment before she turned to Liondapple. "Do we have anything we can spare?"

"Yes, with only two left getting treatment now, there's some extra we can give you." She mewed. "If you'll come with me to get it." She narrowed her eyes at the tom, whose own face changed as though a violent rouge had fallen from the sky in front of him.

"Er, I don't want to cause your Clanmates alarm..." He began.

"Mouse-dung!" Berrythorn snarled from his place on the bank, looking ready to leap on the medicine cat. "Do you think we were kitted yesterday?"

"We might believe you were apprenticed yesterday with such immature outbursts!" Aldercloud snapped, thrashing her tail. "You're old enough to know when to hold your tongue!"

The black and brown patched warrior hissed at his deputy. "You're only a moon older than I am and haven't even been deputy for a season!"

Liondapple stepped between them as Aldercloud growled with her claws raking across the sand but said nothing.

It was commonly known that several of the younger cats in the Clan had disapproved of Robinstar's choice in deputy and believed that she should have picked Berrythorn. He was a good warrior and fiercely loyal to RiverClan, but he was too quick in his judgement and would pounce on any opportunity to prove his strength. Though he'd yielded to her position as deputy, his eyes were blazing with the jealousy that he'd kept somewhat well hidden thus far.

 _Does Oakspots know he's about to start a war within our own Clan?_ She thought angrily toward her fellow medicine cat. This couldn't be Oakspots will, she could tell by how he flinched at the argument taking place in front of him.

"Berrythorn, your guard is no longer necessary." Liondapple meowed. "Go tell Robinstar what Oakspots and I have agreed to, please."

The tom gave her a slight nod and before storming off from the scene, taking a moment to glare at Aldercloud as he passed. The she-cat closed her eyes once he'd passed and took in a deep breathe before speaking to the medicine cats again.

"My apologizes for my Clanmate's behavior, Oakspots. We're all still adjusting to things since Driftstar's death," Aldercloud narrowed her gaze at the obviously uncomfortable ThunderClan cat who merely nodded. "Liondapple, I will stay with our visitor while you fetch the medicine we can spare." Her tone became a bit harsher. "Then you'll be on your way home, as to not _alarm_ your Clanmates."

Oakspots bowed his head in more shame than respect as Liondapple meowed in agreement. "I'll return soon."

The dappled tabby dashed down the path to camp and hoped to StarClan Berrythorn wasn't rallying an entire battle patrol in camp. Eyes were fixed on her and she went by, but only Ivypaw asked her what had happened while she shared a fish with her brother.

"What did the other medicine cat want?" She meowed as she swallowed her mouthful in a hurry to get the question out.

"He just need some more medicine for his ill Clanmates, nothing more." She mewed simply and passed before she could here any form of response.

The den was quiet except for the nasally snores of Otterpelt and Shadewillow. Crystalwing was eating two little minnows, which made Liondapple's tight chest relax a bit.

 _My Clanmates are healing._ She thought as she used a large beech leaf to wrap up a bundle of feverfew and juniper berries. That was her greatest goal as a medicine cat, to make sure RiverClan was as healthy and strong as it could be. She knew that Oakspots felt the same for his own Clan, but this didn't seem like a true plea for help as he and all the other medicine cats had given to one another throughout the cruel leaf-bare. She sighed before scooping up the bundle in her mouth. _Maybe Oakspots is telling the truth, but why be so jumpy about it?_

Liondapple pushed the thought away as she padded through camp again. She briefly met Berrythorn's eyes while he sulked and shared prey with his mate, Minnowflower, whose belly was round with the tom's kits. He draped his tail across the she-cat's plump torso, his smoldering eyes hissing some kind of silent warning to the medicine cat that made a shiver go up her spine.

The sun was disappearing behind the trees across the river when Liondapple made her way to the sandy bank again and found her former mentor, Chestnutfur, waiting with Aldercloud and Oakspots. They were all silent and staring in different directions when she arrived, which made her pelt prickle with more discomfort.

"Chestnutfur," She meowed as she dropped the beech leaf bundle. "I only gave Oakspots what we could spare, nothing more-"

The brown tom raised his tail. "Don't worry, Aldercloud explained. If I'd have been here I would have just agreed to the same conditions."

Liondapple felt a spark of pride raise within her to hear that the older tom had such confidence in her. Looking at Oakspots, his eyes were still clouded and his face twisted with the discomfort his entire visit had plagued him with. She nudged to bundle towards him, and he dropped his head solemnly.

"Thank you, all of you, for your generosity. Flowerstar sends her highest regards to you and your Clanmates." He mewed.

"All of RiverClan wishes your Clanmates to heal well." Chestnutfur responded.

Aldercloud stood and began to pad towards the river as Oakspots nodded to the two medicine cats before picking up the bundle in his jaws and following the deputy across the stepping stones, being careful to mimic her every step since he was unaccustomed to water and most likely didn't want a swimming lesson with the water still so cold.

Once they were out of earshot, Liondapple turned to her old mentor, who seemed to be staring deeply into the horizon.

"Chestnutfur, I...I think that he was lying." The tom pricked his ears to show he was listening, but said nothing. "He acted like there were fleas all over him whenever he spoke and, and the refusal to come into camp is just bizarre."

The older cat stayed still and didn't shift his gaze to the she-cat, making frustration ruffle her pelt. They looked out across the river together, following the blurry shapes of the deputy and medicine cat as he was escorted home. A gust of wind came through, making the air turn to ice as clouds covered the fading sun.

"These are darker times, Liondapple. Darker than you have ever known." Chestnutfur's voice was a grim as the change in weather. "Lies will be thrown and blood will be spilled before it all passes, StarClan has showed us that just now."

She looked up at the graying sky and shuddered. Had StarClan sent them a sign just now?

 _StarClan let us all live to see next newleaf without unnecessary loss and sorrow._ Liondapple prayed silently as small flecks of snow began to touch the water's surface and then vanish.

* * *

Everything was changing.

The walls pressed in all around him, though he was sure he'd stay safe in the warmth he'd always known. But the strange sounds he'd heard before were growing louder all the time...as long as he was here he'd be safe.

The noises had different effects on him, each seemed to be unique in its origin. These noises...these _voices_ , voices was what he'd call them. Most of the voices were soft and calming, like the warmth he'd always known. But one was high-pitched and frantic, making the same sounds again and again.

He was moving, but he couldn't tell where. Was there someplace else other than here?

The voices were growing clearer.

"There's one more, Palepoppy."

"You're doing wonderfully, Softmoon!"

"Thrushpaw, I want you to help this one once they're born. Don't be frightened, just do as Icespots and I did with the others."

Palepoppy. Softmoon. Thrushpaw. Icespots. These sounds the voices made were special. They meant something.

Suddenly, the warmth he'd always known became...colors...no longer darkness. Pinkish-white and dark grey, but something else new was creeping in.

"That's right, nip the birth sac," With that voice, the warmth he'd always known disappeared. A harsher, much less pleasant feeling came over him.

 _Cold._ He was nudged by something and tumbled about a bit. He was now lying on a surface that was... _dry._ Another new sensation, he was _wet_.

"A tom!" The nearest voice cried.

Wet and cold. The two of them together made him suddenly want to make noise likes the others. He cried out, opening his mouth consciously for the first time and filling himself with air; smells and movement filled his senses, there were four larger beings all around him, each with a scent as unique as their voice.

He made a shrill yowl that didn't match any of the others. He had a voice of his own.

"He certainly has good lungs, now get him warm."

Suddenly something warm touched him, it was wet too and a bit rough, but not in a bad way. It rang across his cold being over and over again. It was comforting, filling him with a new kind of warmth, one that came from another being with a voice. As he moved closer to it, something attached to the being poked at him, a prickly sensation...but it was soft at the same time and seemed to cover the entire body of the being.

He liked soft.

The wet rough thing stopped, and something pointy grabbed him and pulled him, _up._ Up was another new feeling, he'd been _down_ before.

It put him down again, and something thinner but covered in the soft prickles wrapped around him to pull him towards one of the voices, which was panting out warm air. He found himself pressed against an entire side of the softness, its gently prodding was accompanied by another wet rough thing.

There were always two other beings that were his size pressing themselves closer as well. Their voices sounded a bit like his, but both were unique still. He felt safe to be among others like himself.

Then the voice of the being he was pressed against spoke. "My kits..my beautiful...kits." He liked this voice especially. It was soft and warm at the same time. The being made a rumbling kind of sound next and curled around himself and the other two little beings closer.

"Congratulations, Softmoon!" _Softmoon_...Softmoon was what the soft and warm voice was called. Even the others thought she was soft. "And good work, Thrushpaw, you did excellent for your first delivery." The same voice said in the kind of rumbling way, it was a _purr_.

Purrs made him feel happy. He purred against Softmoon and the two other little beings. Softmoon purred back.

"Do you want me to go get Waspflight now?" Asked the voice he guessed was called Thrushpaw. "He's been pacing the camp like badger with his claws in the ground since you started kitting at sundown!"

"Don't rush her!" Grumbled the voice who'd just praised Thrushpaw moments before. "Give her a moment."

"No, bring him now." Softmoon said as she cuddle him and the other two little beings closer.

With the silence that followed, he found himself latching his mouth onto something poking out slightly from Softmoon's side. He sucked it impulsively, and a yet another new feeling washed over him, _sweet._ The liquid flowed into his tiny stomach with ease and made a feeling of contentment flood his small being. Softmoon's sweet milk, her warm side, and the two other beings were a much more inviting world than the darkness he'd been in before.

"Softmoon..." A new voice said from a ways away, along with a new scent. It was hushed in what seemed to be great surprise, similar to how he'd felt coming to this new world. "They...they're beautiful!"

"And the best part is I don't look like a plump kittypet anymore!" Softmoon purred at the voice.

"Now I never said that..." The new voice moved closer to them.

"At least not to me, Icespots heard you and Thawpelt, "She's as round as the moon now!"." She teased.

The new voice laughed, and he felt the being bend down and press his muzzle against Softmoon's side and across the three little beings. "I can't believe it...you're a mother now!" He whispered against them.

"And you're a father." Softmoon responded, nuzzling the other being.

 _Mother. Father._ These were what the big beings were, but what was he? He had never needed to know before, he'd just...been. They seemed to know so much, they knew what to call each other's voices and how to make him feel safe in this strange new world, they could tell him. They had to tell him.

He pulled away from Softmoon's side and wiggled out from the other two small beings. He felt the other two turn towards him, so he pushed himself up on his tiny paws and filled himself with air to try and make his voice like theirs.

It came out like a mix of a squeak and purr, but it was the best he'd done so far.

His mother and father were enamored at his voice, and Softmoon pulled him in between her paws and ran her rough wet thing across his little pelt lovingly. "Already roaring like a little lion!"

Lion? Was he a lion?

"His sisters are fierce too!" The voice of his father said. He could hear the other two little beings mewling to him from Softmoon's side.

"What should we name them, Waspflight?" Softmoon asked while he was picked up and put back in the curl of her side.

"The one that looks like you, she looks like a shining leaf." Waspflight said. "Shiny like the mint flowers that will be blooming soon, let's call her Mintkit."

Softmoon purred at his choice. "They grow close to a spruce tree, in the clearing where you always wanted to tackle me as an apprentice! It's bark is dark brown like Mintkit's little sister,"

"Sprucekit," Waspflight said softly to the little being.

"Mintkit and Sprucekit," She murmured warmly. "What about their brother?"

They were talking about him now, they would give him a name too!

"Remember the hickory tree with the gray bark we'd climb up to look down at the other Clans? With the gray bark, like his fur..." Softmoon continued.

"Hickorykit. Oh they're so perfect!" Waspflight exclaimed in joy.

 _Hickorykit._

He was Hickorykit, his sisters were Mintkit and Sprucekit, his mother was Softmoon, and his father was Waspflight. They were his new world. He purred against his sisters and wondered if they thought the same at this moment.

"SkyClan is lucky to have them, they'll grow up to fine cats." Softmoon proclaimed as she curled herself around them tighter.

Cat...they were all cats.

"Fine warriors too..." Waspflight said as he nestled around his family.

SkyClan...warriors...cats... Hickorykit felt like he'd been freed from the darkness he'd been in. He was here to be a cat, a warrior, a brother...and much more.

He pressed himself up on his little paws again, feeling his heart soaring and energy pulsing throughout him, he had a strange urge come over him, he followed it.

Hickorykit opened his eyes and looked at his parents, Softmoon and Waspflight, who stared back with great surprise.

"I'm a warrior and a cat and a brother!" Hickorykit somehow squeaked.

* * *

The night was cold, and a thin layer of frosty snow lay across the moors as the claw-moon drifted in the night sky. The clouds were moving away from the Clans and towards the unknown past the Highstones. Swiftstrike sat just outside the elder's den, her fur fluffed out against the cold and her whiskers stiff as the blades of browned grass she sat upon.

Silverpelt gleamed above, the eyes of the Clan's ancestors watching over them as they slept. The apprentices had gone to sleep in the nursery since Haystar feared them becoming ill since Carrioncough had taken five lives since the start of leaf-bare. The rest of the Clan, however, were curled together in nests made of dry bracken and twigs with bird feathers and scraps of rabbit fur to keep warm against the cold.

WindClan didn't hide from the night sky as the other Clans did, they slept alongside their ancestors.

She could see her kits, now grown warriors, lying in the moonlight. Barkfeather was finally out of the medicine cat's den and was sleeping close to his former apprentice, Froststreak. It was his first night sleeping with the others since he'd fallen ill nearly two moons ago. Thicketfur was curled up in a nest he'd made with Cedarsong, a lovely young she-cat he'd been spending more and more time with, even during such a cruel season. Whenever she asked him about her, he'd begin to fidget like a hare with flees and mutter some excuse to change the subject. She always had to bite back laughter at her son's obvious affection for the she-cat.

Perhaps they'd have kits sometime soon. She could picture little ones running around her son, tugging at his tail and batting at his nose lovingly.

The nursery had been empty for nearly two moons, until Runningpoppy had moved in a few sunrises ago with the announcement of her first litter. It was most likely for the best, however, since they'd heard of the horrors in RiverClan with an entire litter being lost to Carrioncough.

The disease had reached WindClan last, and they'd cockily believed it couldn't reach them.

Then one morning, Roseshade and Harefoot could barely find the strength to stand and both had to nearly be carried to the medicine cat's den. A ripple of dread went across the moors like a bitter gale, and by the next dawn, three more had fallen ill.

Swiftstrike became ill soon after the initial outbreak. She really barely remembered the first few days, only that she could only feel the urge to sleep, and that cats would wake her and urge her to drink and tried to force chewed up prey down her throat. She'd lost the desire to do both.

What she did remember was a gray tabby pelt she'd slept next to her whole life it seemed. He'd lift his head weakly and encourage her to eat, despite his own sickness taking a tighter grip on him with each sunrise. They'd managed to share a mouse together before curling up together and promising each other that they could run in the newleaf sun soon.

But the next time the sickness allowed her to open her eyes, he was gone.

Her heart was dragged to the ground as she stared up at the stars; Owleyes was somewhere among them.

Owleyes. Her mate, her best friend, the father of her kits...they'd spent they're entire lives together; born two sunrises a part, apprenticed together, earned their warrior names in the same moon, shared the raising of their two beautiful sons...

When Swiftstrike had woken to a half-empty nest, she'd somehow found the strength to stand, and stumbled out of the den and began to look for her mate across the moors in dream-like state caused by the fever. If she'd turned and gone the other way, she would have seen the Clan gathered around his body as they prepared him for burial.

She traveled to the ThunderClan border past Fourtrees, calling out for Owleyes at every murmur of wind the came across the plain. In the delirium, she stumbled while climbing on a log to get a better look at the territory. She fell at an awkward angle and twisted her leg badly.

Swiftstrike had laid helpless on the side of the rotting wood as snow fell all around her, drifting in and out of consciousness, crying out for her mate in vain, until the a patrol had finally found her.

It should have been no surprise that she was asked to step down from being deputy and join the elders after such an incident.

Haystar came to her when she was awake three sunrises after she'd been found, and gently told her that he believed that she'd served the Clan long enough, and after such heartbreak with the loss of Owleyes, she deserved to rest herself further after the sickness had past.

The yellow tabby hadn't said it, but she wasn't a mouse-brain, the truth was clear as day; she couldn't spring back like younger cats could, from the sickness or from heartbreak.

Quickfoot was a fine warrior, compassionate, loyal, and popular among her Clanmates. She had been Thicketfur's mentor in seasons past as a newly made warrior herself, and had helped him grow into a fine cat. She was a good choice to take on the role of deputy, WindClan had been placed in capable paws.

Her leg had healed, but the sickness took another half moon to let up after the cure had been found by Liondapple of RiverClan. But the loss of Owleyes was as fresh as the new dawn on the horizon.

"Out on guard duty again?" A voice came from behind. "Or vigil?"

The voice was Pinedapple, her new denmate, the only surviving elder from the outbreak of Carrioncough. Her dark tortoiseshell coat looked like a prickly bush as she padded out of the den and sat beside her.

"A bit of both..." She muttered as she looked out across the camp. "I wanted to see how Barkfeather was taking to the night air, it's the first time he's slept with the rest of the Clan in moons."

The she-cat draped her tail across her shoulders. "And maybe looking for someone? Up there," Pinedapple turned her gaze to Silverpelt, making Swiftstrike sigh deeply. "There's nothing wrong with wanting to look for loved ones that walk with StarClan...I find myself looking for Duskgorse and Rainbird some evenings. I still almost yell at the apprentices to fetch them new bedding!"

Swiftstrike remained silent, for she didn't want to snap at the old she-cat. Though she was now considered just as old by her Clanmates it seemed.

"I can't tell you it gets easier, because it never really does, you just become accustomed to it." She continued. "My mate was taken by hawk. My littermate was thrown off the gorge in a fight with RiverClan. My kits both died before me, one in kitting, the other of a battle with ShadowClan. But WindClan still has a home for me, somehow." Her eyes gleamed with sorrow at the memories, making Swiftstrike feel guilty for not being as friendly with her new denmate.

"I'm so sorry...I know I should be greatful to StarClan that both my sons survived this plague," She mewed as she pressed her flank against the older she-cat. "I guess I'm just being stubborn about how the seasons have worn me down..."

Pinedapple purred. "Our bodies are old, but our minds and hearts are young..."

Swiftstrike nodded before glacing over at the gorse tunnel entrance, where Beetlewing and Sienna were returning from scouting around the perimeter of camp on guard duty. Beetlewing shook his dark pelt from the cold and touched his nose to his mate's shoulder as she groomed her paws and was muttering something to him. Her heart stung, as she saw herself and Owleyes in the pair.

Sienna had joined WindClan last newleaf when she and her brother had been injured in a fight with rouges on the edge of the territory. Beetlewing had brought her prey every evening and had encouraged her to exercise on her broken leg to aid in its healing. It was of little surprise that she'd asked to stay, and Haystar allowed it since Beetlewing would have died of heartbreak otherwise. She was a fine addition to the Clan, fast and patient as a hunter, and a kind and patient teacher when helping train the apprentices. She'd had a beautiful litter as greenleaf came to a close, and their kits were now apprentices.

The leader had offered the same to her brother, but he declined and had returned to his life as a loner. The tom had visited once during leaf-fall to visit his sister's kits, but had not been seen since. The she-cat sometimes expressed worry over her brother since the cold season had brought so much trial to the area.

"You could hardly guess she wasn't Clanborn." Pinedapple commented as they watched the two.

"I see myself in her...Beetlewing was Owleyes' apprentice too..." Swiftstrike agreed.

"Life always is in present in the Clans, at all it's stages," Pinedapple yawned and stood to shake her pelt. "Come on, dawn will be here soon, and we might be frozen solid by then."

Swiftstrike gave a small chuckle of laughter before taking a long glance up at the stars. The sky was beginning to blue with the sunrise approaching, and the stars seemed to glow a bit dimmer as though the sleepy eyes of their ancestors were preparing to curl up in their nests of sunshine. The thought of her mate among them make her heart warm with comfort.

Her thoughts were broken with a sound of scuffling, Pinedapple settling into her nest without a doubt.

Swiftstrike took a long stretch, raking her claws against the frozen ground, before turning herself back towards the den.

Her heart almost burst through her chest, however, when she barely glanced up and noticed what she initially thought to be a trick of the light, until it moved.

Eyes...little gleaming eyes...no bigger than a pebble, peaking out of the tangle of gorse that surrounded the sandy dip WindClan made their camp in.

The eyes blinked, and retreated a bit deeper into the dark undergrowth. Swiftstrike sniffed the air to get a scent of the intruder, but the wind was blowing to the side of her, so no smell but the bitter air filled her nose. She glanced over her shoulder fanatically to beckon Beetlewing and Sienna, as the creature would likely bolt if she tried to pounce on it, but they'd left the camp again to make their rounds before the dawn patrol awoke.

 _Foxdung._ She hissed to herself internally.

The creature peered out a bit more, it's twinkling pupils full of curiosity at what the she-cat would do. It was too small to be any kind of cat...and its coloring was as dark as the gorse it made its hideout.

"Pinedapple," She hissed softly. "There's something above the den!"

A sleepy mumble was heard before the she-cat said something audible. "Whatssthat?"

"There's something in the gorse..."

Pinedapple became more alert. "Yowl for help, get Beetlewing and-"

"They're gone!"

With the conversation, the creature seemed to tilt its little unseen head, and began to creep along the wall towards the center of camp.

 _Enough of this..._ She thought angrily, she was a grown warrior, not a kit that had to sneak around the rest of the Clan!

She let out a low growl, crouched slightly on her paws, and bared her teeth. The creature backed up slightly. She spat and unsheathed her claws.

"Where is it?" Pinedapple's voice broke her gaze with the creature. As the she-cat pulled out of the den, the gorse shook, and the creature's tiny eyes disappeared with a slight scuffle.

Swiftstrike relaxed and sat back as a gust of wind rustled the gorse where the eyes had been. "It's gone...whatever it was."

As she curled up in her nest, the image of the eyes still burned in her wind like the light of sunhigh. That was not like any gaze she'd ever seen, and part of her feared seeing it again, as she could not even imagine the full form of the thing the eyes belonged to.


	5. Chapter 4

"We'll get caught!"

"No we won't, Mistyflight is sharing prey with Hazelflower!"

"Do you think he _looks_ like Mousestar now?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out, mud-brain!"

"He doesn't look different..."

"Well maybe it takes time, like how we have to wait to be big enough to be apprentices."

"But he's always been small, Icepounce said so."

"If I was leader I'd get a new den. It's so gloomy in here!"

"I'm going to be leader before you!"

"Shhh, we'll get caught."

"I thought you said we won't get caught..."

"We will with you squawking like a duck with a fox biting its neck!"

"Hawkkit's been talking more than me!"

Turtlestar opened his eyes and saw three pairs of little paws standing in front of him. He sat up and watched the kits eyes grow larger with fear as he yawned and scratched his ear.

These were the kits of Mistyflight and Briarstep, who had once been Turtlestar's apprentice seasons before. They were only four moons old, yet they had curiosity equal to any apprentice. The leader was glad they'd decided to use their curiosity to peek into the leader's den instead of sneaking out of camp or trying to climb up the hollow's walls.

"It was their idea." The gray tabby, Cinderkit, mewed timidly.

"Was not!" Her gray and white brother, Foggykit, hissed.

"Please still let us be warriors!" Hawkkit pleaded with his golden brown tabby fur trembling.

The tom had to stifle a mrroww of laughter at the little cat's words. He thought back to his own nursery days with Silverclaw; they'd snuck out the dirtplace tunnel and somehow brought back a huge toad alive since they weren't big enough to finish it. They trapped it in a bunch of pine needles and weeds and put it in the elders den as a gift. They'd hoped to become apprentices early, but they ended up making Hollydapple yowl to StarClan when she settled into her nest and the creature had jumped under her belly. They were then scolded by Brightwhisker in front of the whole Clan.

"You'll still become warriors," He meowed to the kits, whose eyes immediately brightened. "But you must learn to not let curiosity get the better of you, you could put yourself and your Clanmates in danger if you just wander into places. You could meet a hungry badger or a snake."

"I'll shred any snake or badger I meet!" Foggykit proclaimed, standing up on his hind legs and swatting at dust specks floating in the air.

"They won't see you coming," Cinderkit chirped. "They'll think you're a pile of dirty snow!"

Foggykit leapt at his sister, who darted away just in time so her littermate fumbled on some of the roots sticking out from the sides of the den. "That wasn't fair!" The little tom grumbled.

"Real enemies won't just sit still for you to leap on them!" Cinderkit retorted before remembering that the leader of the Clan was present and settled down again. "We're sorry for disturbing you, Turtlestar. It won't happen again...we just wanted to see what you looked like now that you'd gotten nine lives-"

"Foggykit kept meowing about how he thought that you'd turn into Mousestar because you were leader." Hawkkit cut it. "And Cinderkit said he was a mouse-brain for thinking that, so we decided to come look for ourselves since we heard Silverclaw say that you were asleep in your den."

"Well, from now on when you have questions about such things, ask Mistyflight or another one of your Clanmates," Turtlestar stated firmly before nudging Hawkkit and Cinderkit towards the den entrance. "Now you'd best get back to the nursery before Moonbriar forms a search patrol for you!"

With that, Cinderkit and Hawkkit scampered up the sandy swoop under the roots and were quickly followed by Foggykit. Turtlestar chuckled to himself and shook the dust from his pelt before ducking out into the shaded daylight of the camp.

It must have been close to sunhigh, as the pools of sunshine were bright against the dampened earth. Willownose's hunting patrol had brought back a handsome haul. There were several lizards and toads along with some mice and a vole or two, all still scrawny from leaf-bare, but would fill the Clan's bellies all the same.

The kits were now tumbling about their father, Briarstep, mewing about fighting a snake. Mistyflight and Hazelflower watched the scene from a ways away. The gray tabby beamed with amusement at her children, but Hazelflower's gaze still seemed clouded with the grief that had consumed her the night before, making Turtlestar's chest ache with a ripple of grief for their dead leader.

Over a ways, he spied Silverclaw and Foxfang sunning themselves in a patch of moss. Silverclaw was teasing the dark ginger tom with the wiggly tail of the lizard she'd been eating hanging out like a worm from her mouth.

"Stop! We aren't kits anymore!" He protested playfully.

"You certainly can squeal like one!" Silverclaw meowed before chomping down the tail with a coy spark in her eyes.

Over by the warrior's den, Maplestorm was grooming her sickly mate, Rabbitwhisker, who looked skinny but better than he had been in previous days. Leopardpaw was taking over a squirrel to the elder's den, where Icepounce and Grayfall were reminiscing about their younger days in ShadowClan. Talonflight and Nettlepaw were actually looking with somewhat interest at a pair of lizards the apprentice's sister, Acornpaw, had brought to them.

The sight of his Clan at such ease, even after such a horrible season, helping each other and even somehow being cheerful made Turtlestar's heart warm with hope and satisfaction.

"Mousestar is looking at them the same way I'm sure," Birchstrike, a senior warrior, mewed as he came over to Turtlestar. "Newleaf will make all of this suffering seem worth the pain somehow."

He nodded to the older tom. "How are you feeling?" Mousestar had been the tom's father and the two had always been very close.

Birchstrike sighed softly and puffed out his scruff like a chill had come over him. "Change is never easy... I know it was hard for you to bury Brightwhisker when she joined StarClan. Mousestar served his Clan until his last breathe, and I can only hope to live my life the same way."

Turtlestar mewed in agreement as the two toms walked over to the fresh-kill pile. His stomach was finally beginning to ache with hunger after Cherrycloud's traveling herbs the day before. He picked out a brownish-gray toad and padded over toward Willownose and her mate, Smokefur. The she-cat mewed a greeting as the pair's kits, Featherpaw and Sweetpaw, began to whisper to each other in excitement as their new Clan leader settled down just a few tail-lengths away.

"Greetings Turtlestar," Smokefur meowed between bites of a mouse. "The prey is running better already, and leafbare hasn't left us yet."

"A good omen for the warmer seasons ahead." Turtlestar agreed. He then turned to the apprentices, whose pelts began to prickle immediately. "And your training is going well I trust?"

The littermates exchanged glances before Featherpaw responded. "Uh, yes it is. I caught two lizards this morning."

"And Blackflame is taking me out for night training at the Dark Sycamore!" Sweetpaw added.

Willownose purred at her daughters and Smokefur beamed with pride.

"Good prey and good young warriors in the seasons ahead." Turtlestar meowed to the sisters who puffed up with satisfaction at their leaders comment.

He peeled into the tough skin of his toad and felt his stomach rumble with approval as he swallowed the watery creature in a few bites. After eating, he knew it was time he spoke to the Clan. _Stop stalling with small talk, your Clan needs you to give them strength!_ He told himself while he gave his chest a few quick licks.

This was his first time addressing his Clanmates as the Clan leader, the first of many times _._

He padded over to the smooth stone that served as the leader's perch during meetings and leapt up, immediately causing a silence to fall over camp. All the cats turned their attention to the young tabby with pricked ears.

 _This is your duty, given by StarClan. You are their leader._

He took in a deep breath, filling his chest with the strength he could muster. "Cats of ShadowClan, we have lived through one of the hardest season our Clan has seen in many moons. Carrioncough has robbed us of strength and much needed help to get through the cold of leaf-bare by taking several of our Clanmates from us."

Turtlestar noticed Talonflight lower her head in memory of her sister as she sat with Nettlepaw beside the medicine cat's den. The young tom touched his tail to her shoulder in comfort, which she blinked gratefully to.

"Despite this grief that effects us all," He continued. "We are still growing strong. Our apprentices learn more with each passing day, our nursery is full of new ShadowClan cats, and our borders are secure-"

"Maybe not as secure as we think!" A voice rose from the crowd. Turtlestar's eyes fell on Darkbird, a warrior only a bit younger than him. Her eyes were gleaming with courage, but her tail twitched with anxiousness as the rest of her Clan gazed and murmured all around her. "I have something to report, Turtlestar...but I didn't know when to tell you."

Some cats mewed in disapproval at the tabby she-cat's interruption, but Turtlestar nodded at her and raised his tail to silence the crowd. "This is as good a time as any, Darkbird, please tell us all what you have discovered."

Darkbird's tense body relaxed a bit at his words. "It was my apprentice and I," She beckoned Acornpaw over beside her. The young cat's dark ginger pelt looked like thorns as she nervously padded to sit beside her mentor. "When we were hunting earlier, Acornpaw discovered something on in the trees near the Carrionplace."

Concerned voices rippled throughout the camp.

"Enemy scent?" Duskheart asked with a thrash of his tail. "Trespassers?"

"It could be WindClan...they could have gotten word that Mousestar was dead and now they want revenge!" Briarstep snarled.

"I'll shred all those rabbit-chasing cowards!" Leopardpaw proclaimed from his place by the elder's den, only to be growled at to be silent by Icepounce.

"Let her finish before you march off to get your ears torn off, young fool!" The shaggy old tom hissed.

Leopardpaw fell silent and stared at his paws in embarrassment as some mrrowws of laughter erupted.

"No, no scent of WindClan." Darkbird continued. "Acornpaw, why don't you tell them what you found?"

The young she-cat's white ears flattened, making Turtlestar feel sympathy for the apprentice, who'd always been rather quiet. "Um...well. I was looking for lizards under some rotting logs," She looked down at her paws. Darkbird whispered something to her in encouragement, and she raised her head and puffed out her chest with air. "Around the Twoleg fence that surround the Carrionplace. The trees in that area had marks on them, like claws, but they were jagged and strange looking-"

"The rouges could be back!" Rabbitwhisker yowled with a cracking voice from the entrance of Cherrycloud's den. "The ones that killed Tanglefur!"

"How dare those mange pelts show their faces on our territory again!" Smokefur hissed as he unsheathed his claws.

"We can't be sure." Willownose meowed sharply at her riled mate. "Acornpaw, did it smell like any unfamiliar cats?"

The apprentice shook her head, which caused more confusion.

"No cats means no concern of ours." Grayfall, the elderly gray she-cat declared lashing her tail.

"It could be a badger you mouse-brain!" Icepounce responded curtly.

"What badger comes into marshland?" Leopardpaw asked.

"They don't, it must be old and delirious if it is." Grayfall replied firmly, motioning towards the old white tom.

Icepounce snarled. "We said that about those rouges too..."

Over by the nursery, Mistyflight scooped her tail around her kits. "If there's a badger than it must be driven out immediately!"

Turtlestar yowled for silence. Icepounce and Grayfall glared at each other for a moment, then turned back to the tabby tom.

"Is there anything else the two of you discovered?" He asked.

Acornpaw shook her head. Darkbird spoke up. "She came to tell me right after. I examined them. They looked odd, about the size of cat claws, but were placed in such a way that they looked like they must have been higher off the ground. We reported it to Moonbriar when we returned from the hunting patrol."

"Forgive me Turtlestar," The spotted deputy meowed from her seat among Blackflame and Webpelt. "I should have told you as soon as I heard, but I wanted to give you rest after your journey from the Highstones."

Turtlestar shook his head. "There is nothing to apologize for, I know about it now, which is all that matters."

The Clan looked uneasy now. He feared if perhaps this was the beginning of the new threat that his warrior ancestors had foretold. _Already this new threat has come to pass. StarClan, please give us some peace._

"Mousestar is now gone, and I am leader of ShadowClan. It is my duty to follow in his paw-steps and defend our territory from all invaders. I will take a patrol to investigate these trees immediately to see what we can discover about their origin."

Murmurs of approval passed around the camp.

"Darkbird and Acornpaw, the two of you will of course come. I'll also take Moonbriar and Foxfang. No matter what we find, I trust in all of my Clanmates to aid me in protecting our land with the courage that makes ShadowClan strong!"

Yowls full of determined energy rose from the hollow. "Turtlestar! Turtlestar! Turtlestar!"

The sun was beginning to migrate towards the far horizon of the sky when the patrol was nearly at the Carrionplace. Acornpaw lead the way, her tail held high with pride, with Darkbird on one side of her. Moonbriar walked beside Turtlestar as Foxfang brought up the rear. This was a more damp part of the territory, muddy pools of water sloped into the earth at random and an unfamiliar cat would be soaked in no time. The ShadowClan patrol padded through the area with ease however, as this was their home.

"It feels so strange to have discovered something so important!" Acornpaw was chattering up ahead, her fur bristling with excitement. "I've been apprenticed for moons and the only special thing I've ever found was an old tuft of fox fur in a thorn bush..."

"It was still good you found it," Darkbird meowed. "It could have been a fox that was living in nearby."

Acornpaw shrugged. "Well Leopardpaw found that trail of those loose dogs...even though their Twolegs had caught them again by the time our patrol found them. And Nettlepaw is so good at hunting! He can find the best prey anywhere."

Her mentor gave her a friendly shove. "And your brothers also almost turned to icicles when they tumbled into one of these pools fighting like they were in the nursery over who'd be the better deputy and leader!"

Moonbriar exchanged an amused glance with Turtlestar as they pressed on.

The pine trees began to thin and they could see the Twoleg barrier of Carrionplace. Turtlestar wrinckled his face at the reel of Twoleg rubbish as they pressed closer.

"Are the trees nearby?" Foxfang asked, his voice thick with the same disgust.

Darkbird flicked her ears. "Yes, go on, lead them to your discovery, Acornpaw."

The young she-cat timidly went ahead, padding through some ferns, and then stopped at a bunch of young trees. As the patrol followed suit, the strange markings that had been mentioned came into view.

"What in StarClan's name did this?" Foxfang snorted as he sniffed the base of one of the trees.

There were streaks of white in the in the bark, thick and deep further down the trunk and then thin and more erratic further up. They held the strong scent of pine, though these were not pine trees.

"Trying to hide their scent maybe," Moonbriar muttered as she unsheathed her claws to test them in the grooves. "These were made by a cat's claw."

"What about up higher?" Darkbird asked, circling around the other side. "They can't be from cats, unless they were kits."

"Awfully agile kits to jump that high..." Foxfang muttered with a twitch of his whiskers.

"I don't think I can even jump that high," Acornpaw added shyly. Foxfang gave her a small lick over her ears to show that the young she-cat's input was appreciated.

Turtlestar circled around the trees a few times, almost bumping into Darkbird on his third round. She seemed to freeze like stone, her pale brown eyes wide, making him fear he'd tread on her tail. But then she meowed that it was her fault and moved a ways away.

He was reminded what Silverclaw had said earlier about the she-cat making up his new nest, but he couldn't talk about that now. He stared intently at the marks for a moment while he thought of what course of action to take, trying desperately not to think of what Mousestar would do.

"Darkbird, Foxfang, Moonbriar, I want you to be taking special patrols through this area for the next few days." Turtlestar told his Clanmates. "At least one of you, Acornpaw or myself must be on these patrols. I want one after sunrise and one before dusk to see if anymore marks appear."

"Or if we catch the cats doing it," Foxfang grumbled as he narrowed his gaze at the tree trunk.

Turtlestar nodded to the dark ginger warrior. The five cats set about marking each of the trees to let the cats know if they returned that they'd been detected as a warning.

The sun was beginning to dip lower in the sky and give way to dusk as the patrol neared the camp. Foxfang was leading this time, while Moonbriar and Acornpaw talked as they padded side by side. The deputy listened patiently to the apprentice, who'd opened up significantly throughout the patrol, as she told all about some rude WindClan apprentices she'd met at her first gathering.

"And they called _me_ mangy, when _their_ mother isn't even a Clan cat!" She was grumbling.

"WindClan has always been open to drifters." Moonbriar agreed.

"They're heads are filled with all the rabbit fluff they eat." Foxfang snorted looking over his shoulder.

Turtlestar hung back with Darkbird, whose pretty stormy gray pelt shimmered in the sun patches that hung through the canopy like raindrops. Turtlestar had never talked to the she-cat much, not outside of patrol business or a quick word of Acornpaw's training. She was a good mentor and a close friend to the leader's sister.

"I was impressed with how you had her speak for herself at the Clan meeting today," He said in a low voice so the apprentice could not hear. "She needs to trust herself more."

Darkbird gave a low purr. "Yes, she has a lot to offer her Clan. She feels drowned out by her loud brothers I know... I hope she's more confident after this."

Turtlestar meowed in agreement. "She'll be a warrior before long."

As they neared the hollow of the camp, he slowed his pace while Acornpaw confidently strolled through the thorn barrier ahead with Moonbriar and Foxfang. Darkbird remained by his side, pausing briefly to lick some mud off her delicate white paws.

"Er...Silverclaw mentioned that you'd made my nest the leader's den, well I mean, technically _my_ den now but..." The tom's stomach was suddenly tight with anxiousness. "Thank you, that was very kind of you."

The she-cat's eyes gleamed with appreciation. "Of course, I knew you'd be tired when you return from receiving your nine lives." The tabby suddenly walked up to him and licked the back of his head. She spat a clump of mud on the ground. "Sorry, I noticed it and I just...couldn't help myself." She mewed awkwardly.

"No." Turtlestar chuckled. "I couldn't have reached it anyway, you've saved me from looking like a mouse-brain walking around camp until Silverclaw had noticed and come gotten it off while scolding me like a kit!"

Darkbird let out a mrroww of laughter. "If she can take her eyes off Foxfang for more than a few moments!"

The two tabbies walked back into camp talking about Silverclaw and Foxfang's painfully obvious courtship, and shared another laugh when they saw the pair already sharing tongues close to the warrior's den.

Darkbird rolled her eyes before she parted with Turtlestar by going to see her sister, Blackflame, by the fresh-kill pile. Acornpaw was chewing through a toad beside her brothers, telling them all about her special patrol and discovery. To the leader's relief, the frail Nettlepaw was sharing a black bird with Leopardpaw, actually looking somewhat interested in eating.

A ways away, Cherrycloud was encouraging Talonflight finish a mouse she'd taken only a few minuscule bites.

"Come on, you won't be going on any patrols if you don't eat." The medicine cat said in an authoritative but gentle voice.

Talonflight bit into the mouse and chewed slowly and with great labor, as though she'd forgotten how to eat.

Cherrycloud gave her a purr of satisfaction, before seeing her leader watching the scene, and made her way over to him.

"How was your patrol?" The red and white she-cat asked as they began to walk around the hollow.

Turtlestar snorted. "We saw the marks, definitely made by cats but...some of them looked like they were made by something else."

She twitched her whiskers. "An animal? It could be Twolegs since it is so close to Carrionplace."

Turtlestar shook his head. "No, there was no scent around them that belonged to any animal or Twoleg." The tom sat in a sunlit patch of damp earth in front of his den. "The trees smelled of pine, but they weren't pine trees."

Cherrycloud stared at her leader a moment to think of a response. "Do you think this is a part of the threat Mousestar told you about?"

He shrugged. "I didn't see anything like what they showed me..."

The medicine cat's eyes gleamed with worry as she sat beside Turtlestar, pressing her pelt against his flank, her pelt prickling. "Prophecies are often unclear until after they have passed," The she-cat meowed grimly while looking through the trees to a gap where the sky was visible. A few lonely stars twinkled dimly in the sunset. "I only hope that StarClan grants us safe passage through these times."

Turtlestar muttered in agreement and stared at the pale dots, floating helpless in the intense brightness of the sun. _Don't let us be that vulnerable._ He prayed silently while raking his claws across the ground.


End file.
